India, US on course to deepen ties
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had an imaginative start to his visit to the US. He participated in a yoga event in New York, organised in cooperation with the United Nations. It was clear that PM Modi was determined to draw international attention to the importance of this ancient Indian practice, which is now becoming increasingly popular beyond India’s borders. The visit to Washington was marked by a very warm reception accorded to him by President Biden and the First Lady. There was also a visible presence of a large number of members of the Indian community. What followed these ceremonials were wide-ranging discussions in Washington on global and bilateral issues. Both sides agreed to giving prominence to issues which would provide a new dynamism to economic growth in India. Many top US business leaders, ranging from Elon Musk of SpaceX and Tesla to Sundar Pichai, the Chief Executive of Google, met PM Modi in Washington.
India has stood by its position of refusing to find fault with Russia on Ukraine a position that the US now clearly understands.
India focused attention primarily on securing American investment in industrial and financial projects. But by far the most important agreement reached has been to establish a supply chain on manufacturing semiconductors in India; these are now an integral part of virtually all sophisticated machinery and manufacturing. This project with US company Micron Technology Inc. will involve an investment of $825 million within five years. It will provide 20,000 job opportunities and revolutionise industrial production in India. It was also agreed that 60,000 Indian engineers would be trained to participate in the semiconductor venture. Increasing cooperation with the US in areas ranging from artificial intelligence to clean energy and telecommunications is also now being envisaged.
The US now appears ready to expand defence cooperation with India. It has been decided that the US will supply GE 414 engines for the Light Combat Aircraft, to be progressively manufactured in India. Moreover, in a massive deal with India, the US is to supply 31 MQ-9B advanced high-altitude drones, which will be assembled in India as part of efforts to enhance India’s long-distance surveillance capabilities.
Modi’s visit to the US has also set the stage for India to face the diplomatic and security challenges posed by China. India cannot easily forget the tensions that followed the Chinese intrusions in the Tawang sector, which were resisted and led to a Chinese withdrawal. Long-distance reconnaissance facilities and a wide range of drones are essential to safeguard India’s land and maritime borders.
India has stood by its position of refusing to find fault with Russia on Ukraine a position that the US now clearly understands. Nevertheless, there is now a serious commitment by both the US and India to cooperate closely in the Quad for guaranteeing the security of the Indo-Pacific Region. Nobody, including China, has any doubt that this group is committed to ensuring the safety and security of countries in India’s eastern neighbourhood. India has provided Vietnam and the Philippines with its potent BrahMos missiles to deal with Chinese incursions across their disputed land and maritime frontiers. Moreover, both the US and India have been joined by the UAE and Israel to maintain security and promote cooperation across the oil-rich Persian Gulf. The US and India have shared concerns about China’s growing naval presence across the sea lanes of the Indian Ocean. There is an increasing focus on Beijing’s growing presence in the Hambantota Port in Sri Lanka, Gwadar in Pakistan and its support base built at a cost of $590 million in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa.
PM Modi’s visit to the US was the first occasion when both India and the US bluntly stated that they stood together to counter global terrorism and unequivocally condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. The joint statement averred that the two leaders “strongly condemned cross-border terrorism and the use of terrorist proxies by Pakistan”. The US and India have jointly demanded that Pakistan should take action against UN-listed terrorist groups such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen. They have called on Pakistan to ensure that no territory under its control is used for launching terrorist attacks. Pakistan has strongly taken objection to the India-US statement. Its Foreign Ministry spokesman has described the statement as “unwarranted, one-sided and misleading”. It has averred that the reference to Islamabad in the statement was “contrary to diplomatic norms”.
Moreover, there had earlier been an unprecedented meeting in Saudi Arabia between the National Security Advisers of India and the US on the one hand and senior leaders of Saudi Arabia on the other. While India has been silent on the meeting, it is said to have been held to discuss ‘regional initiatives for infrastructure’. The White House had proclaimed that the meeting sought to “advance their shared vision of a more secure and prosperous Middle East region interconnected with India and the world”.
PM Modi’s US visit has set new priorities for the India-US relations. The economic dimensions of India’s policies are now huge and areas where we seek further economic cooperation have been spelt out in Washington. Given China’s growing hostility towards India and its propensity to cross the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh, there will be inevitably greater efforts to enhance India’s military production. The PM’s visit has charted the route for enhanced India-US cooperation between the Strait of Malacca in the East and the Strait of Hormuz to India’s West.
