WASHINGTON, Aug 13 (INP): A top American commander has offered the US help to India to modernise its military, saying that together they can improve India's military capabilities in significant and meaningful ways. Over the past decade, the defence trade between the US and India has touched nearly USD 15 billion and is expected to gallop in the next few years, as India is looking at the US for some of the latest military hardware including fighter jets, latest unmanned aerial vehicles and aircraft carriers. "I believe that the US is ready to help India modernise its military. India has been designated a major defence partner of the US. This is a strategic declaration that's unique to India and the US. It places India on the same level that we have many of our treaty allies," Commander of the US Pacific Command or PACOM Admiral Harry Harris told Indian media. "This is important, and I believe that together we will be able to improve India's military capabilities in significant and meaningful ways," said Harris, who has been personally pushing for a strong India-US defence relationship. The Admiral said he is fairly happy with the level of defence cooperation that exists today between the two sides. "We have been partners with India in the Malabar exercise series, the maritime exercise, for a number of years. I participated in one of the very first... one of the early Malabars, in 1995," he recollected, reflecting on the decades old association with India. Noting that the exercise, and the complexity of it, has improved steadily over the years, he said he is very pleased that Japan is part of Malabar. "I think the trilateral relationship between India and Japan and the US, that relationship is very important," he said as he advocated for Australia too joining this group. Responding to a question on India's decision against the American move to have a joint India-US naval patrol in the Indian Ocean, Harris said the US is not disappointed at all. "I'm not disappointed. This is on the patrols... I'm not disappointed at all, I'm encouraged that we were able to have a discussion about it, and I hope that that discussion remains open," he said. "We stand ready to participate at whatever level India wants us to participate," Harris said. Harris refrained from giving any answer on India and the United States starting to share information about Chinese submarines in the Indian Ocean region. Harris reiterated that he believes that the deepening US-India relationship is the defining strategic partnership for the 21st century. INP/AH/SB