Indian PM Narendra Modi’s state visit to the United States showcased how important the bilateral relationship has become
30-06-2023
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi undertook a four-day state visit to the United States (US) last week, which by most accounts marked what Modi and US President Joe Biden described as a new stage in the India-US relationship. Earlier, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti had said prior to commencement of the visit that it would go down in history as the “turning of a page” and starting of a “bold new chapter” in India-US relations. It was, therefore, not surprising that Modi was feted with a welcome ceremony and a State dinner, and was also invited to address a joint session of the US Congress for the second time during his prime ministership, an uncommon gesture reserved only for the closest. Even beyond this pomp and ceremony that was intended to signify that the US sees India as a critical partner, and to reflect the two countries’ shared commitment to peace and progress, the concrete takeaways from the visit for both sides were substantial. A long list of deliverables spanning defence, critical and emerging technology, health, energy and mobility were agreed upon by the time Modi boarded his flight back to New Delhi. The upbeat, optimistic mood on both sides was captured vividly by Biden when he characterized his country’s multi-faceted and blossoming relationship with India as a “next-generation partnership”.
Among the important agreements signed during the visit, General Electric and India’s Hindustan Aeronautical Limited announced that they had concluded a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the co-production in India of GE 414 Jet Engines for India’s Tejas Mk2 light combat aircraft. India’s purchase of armed drones was also announced on 22 June. The Defense Ministries of the two countries launched the inaugural session of an innovation platform, ‘INDUS-X’, in Washington DC on 21 June, which was hosted by the US India Business Council (USIBC) and is aimed to foster defense industrial collaboration. US semiconductor technology and chip maker Micron Technology Inc said it would invest up to $825 million in a new chip assembly and test facility in India’s Gujarat state, which would be bolstered by investment from the Indian government and Gujarat state government totaling $2.75 billion in all. In space cooperation, India joined the Artemis Accords of 25 countries for space exploration and cooperation. India and the US also agreed on a framework for human spaceflight this year, and agreed on a mission to the International Space Station in 2024.
A Blog Post by Manjari Chatterjee Miller for the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) think tank on 26 June described these agreements thus: “Perhaps most importantly, both countries scored wins in their defense and strategic partnership. U.S. company General Electric has signed a memorandum of understanding with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited to produce fighter jet engines for the Indian Air Force. While the deal is subject to congressional approval, this is a huge step both for India, which can domestically manufacture fighter jets but not the engines to power them, and for the United States, which is very choosy about the sharing of military technology. Moreover, India’s defense ministry has approved the purchase of armed MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones (a type of Predator drone) made by General Atomics, which will enhance the intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities of India’s armed forces across domains. Currently, only some U.S. allies own Predator drones. The two countries also established a Joint Indo-U.S. Quantum Coordination Mechanism to facilitate joint research between public and private sectors and launched the INDUS-X partnership to expand their strategic technology and defense industrial cooperation. India also agreed to join the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), a U.S.-led partnership with twelve other countries plus the European Union, to create critical energy minerals supply chains”.
On immigration, which has been a thorny issue, the US agreed to allow some categories of Indians on H-1B visas to renew them within the United States, doing away with the need for them to travel abroad. The Indian daily The Hindu reported that “After years of pandemic-induced visa slowdowns, the US is announcing a pilot program to renew visas domestically (i.e., applicants do not have to travel outside to get their renewal stamp), for certain petition-based temporary workers. This program could expand to cover H1b and L skilled visas by 2024 and to other categories eventually”. The two sides also agreed that the US will open two new consulates in Bengaluru and Ahmedabad, while India will reopen its consulate in Seattle, and announce new consulates elsewhere.
Miller described India as a “valued partner country” of the US, adding that it had, therefore, been “offered concrete wins” by Washington. She listed the Biden administration’s promise to help India increase production of electric vehicles and meet its goal of installing 500 gigawatts of wind, solar, and other renewable energy this decade. She added, “The United States too made symbolic and material gains. In terms of symbolic wins, the United States was able to showcase its close partnership with India—a country that also shares its deep anxiety about the specter of a rising China—and highlight the exchange of effusive warm statements between President Biden and Prime Minister Modi a mere two days after the former labelled President of China Xi Jinping a ‘dictator’. There were also material wins. Indian solar panel maker Vikram Solar Limited will invest up to $1.5 billion in the U.S. solar energy supply chain”.
Both sides stressed they were serious about deepening bilateral ties. Biden told reporters that the partnership between the US and India was “stronger, closer and more dynamic than any time in history”, while Modi spoke of a “new chapter” in the strategic relationship between the two countries. Biden said in his welcome speech on the South Lawn of the White House, “…As democracies, we can better tap into the full talent of all of our people and attract investments… with our greatest export being the power of our example: equity under the law, freedom of expression, religious pluralism and diversity of our people”. Modi, on his part, said, “After becoming the Prime Minister, I have come here many times, but today for the first time the doors of the White House have been opened for the Indian-American community in such large numbers”. Both leaders referred to the two countries’ Constitutions beginning with the phrase “We the people”, and Modi also said, “Both of our countries take pride in their diversity. Both of us believe in the fundamental principle of in the interest of all for the welfare of all. Our strong strategic partnership is a clear proof of the power of democracy… Democracy runs in our veins, we live democracy”. Biden had earlier said he had a “good discussion” with Modi about “democratic values” common to both countries.
Modi and Biden also discussed the war in Ukraine during their bilateral meeting. Conveying India’s consistent position, which the US had quite some time ago come to terms with, Modi told the press after the meeting that “We are completely ready to contribute in any way we can to restore peace”.
Some sections of the US media were unconvinced of the warm welcome extended to Modi. Alyssa Ayres in an article in Time magazine accused Modi of breaking “with India’s past, most notably in his emphasis on India’s Hindu, rather than syncretic and secular, cultural heritage”. The New York Times accused Biden of downsizing democracy concerns, and an article in The Washington Post opined that Modi’s India “increasingly resembled an autocracy in which religious minorities are under attack”. Just before Modi landed in the US, a letter by over 70 Congressmen, all Democrats, urged Biden to discuss with Modi the need to protect human rights and democratic values in India. Former President Barack Obama appealed to Modi to protect ethnic minorities in India.
Commenting on the matter in Foreign Policy, C. Raja Mohan, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, wrote in an article titled ‘For Biden and Modi, Interests Prevail Over Ideology’ on 21 June that “Modi’s Western critics wonder why Biden is hosting the Indian leader with such enthusiasm. After all, the Biden administration’s framing of geopolitics as a contest between democracy and autocracy implies opposition to what the critics consider Modi’s democratic backsliding… The problem is a reluctance to correctly read the trends driving the United States and India into a strategic embrace. The main source of their convergence is by now familiar: Both nations feel challenged by China. After much hesitation and reluctance over the last two decades, the United States has finally come around to the clear proposition that China represents a persistent, long-term threat to U.S. interests. The 2022 U.S. National Security Strategy affirmed that not even Russia’s war in Ukraine alters this strategic priority”. He added that “India, too, has zeroed in on China as its most important strategic challenge in the 21st century. Four significant military crises along the two countries’ common border in the Himalayas—in 2013, 2014, 2017, and 2020—have underlined the threat to New Delhi, as have Chinese policies that challenge India’s primacy in the subcontinent, Indian Ocean interests, and global aspirations”.
Raja Mohan opined that “The Western liberal critique of Modi’s domestic policies has tended to obfuscate the deepening structural convergence on China. The focus on global democracy promotion in official U.S. foreign policy since the Cold War never meant the United States would forego the pursuit of its many other interests… What’s more, if Washington can do business for many decades with the House of Saud, the Pakistan Army, and the Chinese Communist Party, it is unreasonable to think it will be squeamish about building on clearly convergent interests with the Modi government… If the enormity of the China challenge to both countries has provided the structural impetus, strong political will in Washington and New Delhi is set to finalize a solid agenda. This ranges from defense and semiconductors to artificial intelligence and outer space”. He also pointed out that “All presidents since Clinton signaled a strong desire for deeper strategic ties to India as part of the effort to restructure U.S. foreign and security policy toward Asia. Modi’s state visit to Washington this week is just the latest step in steadily growing U.S.-India relations, a process that has accelerated under Biden”.
Indian industry hailed the outcomes of Modi’s visit to the US. The President of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), Subhrakant Panda, expressed confidence that “this is the start of a new chapter in the bilateral relationship with mutual trust and convergence of views on strategic issues. It will benefit not just the two nations but the world at large”. Chairman of Mahindra Defence and Aerospace, S.P. Shukla described it as “a trendsetting visit”. He added, “PM Modi addressing US Congress for the second time sends out a very important message that the two nations wish to work together. The message goes to the industrial community, business, community, and policymakers and intent starts getting translated into action. Both leaders have clearly specified that technology will be the cornerstone of the partnership”. Former FICCI President and the founder of Edelweiss Group, Rashesh Shah, felt that the visit “has put the switch on to make India more attractive to global businesses and global investors”.
A recent statement by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken spoke volumes about the current status of the bilateral relationship: “We know that India and the United States are big, complicated countries. We certainly have work to do to advance transparency, to promote market access, to strengthen our democracies, to unleash the full potential of our people. But the trajectory of this partnership is unmistakable and it is filled with promise”. The statement reflects how many in India and the US view ties.
Ambassador Eric Garcetti too focused on the bright things that lie ahead when he said “This really is about the future. And I think America and India are the future, stronger together and showing a vision of how we can create a more prosperous world for everyone if this relationship deepens”.
