It would be a big opportunity to upgrade India-US bilateral ties
A historic one-of-its-kind state visit is slated for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he lands on the East Coast of the United States next week. The rush hour traffic of high profile leaders from both countries crisscrossing Washington and New Delhi to iron out a meaningful outcome document, the choice of venues during Mr Modi’s visit to the US and the number of events being planned, including many for the first time, suggest that America is walking the extra mile to pull India into close friends’ club. This is a departure from the cold war-infused reluctance of having warm ties, which India and the US have witnessed for nearly 4 decades.
The oldest democracy and the largest democracy chose partners on either side of the cold war aisle as trusted, till things started moving a decade and a half back. The US shed its reluctance of allowing India into the exclusive nuclear group, thereby providing access to high-end technology, Delhi around the same time had started realising the benefits of a free economy and therefore, the need to shed its old socialist ideological alliances. The 15-year journey has been, dotted with milestones each upgrading the bilateral relationship.
In the run-up to the state visit, with a promise of being the most significant and full of meaningful business outcomes, Secretary of State, US, Antony J Blinken while addressing the Idea of India summit commented “We are here almost literally on the eve of what we believe will be a historic state visit by Prime Minister Modi – one that will further solidify what President Biden has called the ‘defining relationship’ of the 21st century.” He went on to highlight that the bipartisan approach to India's relationship has been consistent during the last years of the Clinton administration, through the Bush administration, Obama administration, and Trump administration, with an extra push coming in from the ongoing Biden administration.
The aim is to bring India as a key player and close friend of the USA in the overall geo-political strategy with a sharp focus on the Indo-Pacific, where China is a growing threat to both nations, which was read out clearly in the Secretary of State’s speech. He said “We see the importance of the partnership in a shared commitment to addressing regional and global challenges – promoting health security, working with our Quad partners to build a free, open, secure, prosperous Indo-Pacific where people, where goods, where ideas can travel freely and rules are applied fairly. I have witnessed India’s constructive leadership on these issues up close these last two and a half years, and I see it in their ambitious agenda at this year’s G20; in our new I2U2 group with India, with Israel, with the UAE, the United States; and in probably more than a dozen meetings that I’ve had with my counterpart, my colleague, my friend, Foreign Minister Jaishankar.”
The emphasis on economic ties marks a new chapter for the bilateral where the US values India as an important economic ally, which over time could prove to be one the most crucial partnerships. Statistics like $191 bn of trade between the US and India last year, robust investment by American companies in India and vice versa creating millions of job opportunities spanning from Kolkata to North Carolina and beyond, are all set to get a leg up, with the upcoming state visit.
The preparatory meetings by Defence Secretary US, National Security Advisor US, a visit by Finance Minister, India, Railways IT and Communications Minister, External Affairs Minister India and several high-level officials from India visiting the US in the recent past are sure to push the numbers higher. The industry stakeholders are cheering for a $500 billion bilateral trade which will further create jobs in both countries. All eyes are now on Mr Modi in New York and Washington, next week.
The writer is a policy analyst. The views expressed are personal.)
