Finance
According to the White House, the US wants to demonstrate that the relationship between India and America is of “positive strategic consequence” during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official state visit.
On June 21, Prime Minister Modi embarks on a three-day state visit to Washington, DC. On June 22, there will be a state banquet, a welcome ceremony, and a speech to the joint session of the US Congress.
The US-India cooperation is stronger and costlier than ever, according to Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer, who was speaking at a panel discussion on Tuesday during the annual “India Ideas Summit” of the US India Business Council.
“The main message that we are looking to convey is that this is a relationship of positive strategic consequence,” he said.
“We think we are much more deeply aligned and significantly converging with each other on numerous global issues and innumerable ways we can benefit each of our populations.
“What you will see when Prime Minister Modi comes and is able to spend some time with President Joe Biden in this setting, is a modern relationship between two significant countries that will benefit their own people,” Finer said.
According to him, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will have the honor of hosting the Prime Minister of India for an official state visit and supper at the White House in just eight days. This will be the third time it has happened under this administration.
“I can tell you, … how much he’s looking forward to it, how much attention to detail is given at the very highest levels for governments and it’s good evidence of that,” he said.
Finer stated that the two governments are expanding strategic convergence and strengthening policy alignment in order to elevate and extend strategic technology and defense industrial cooperation.
“We really believe that we now look instinctively to each other and more cooperatively, to uphold a free and open Indo-Pacific to drive innovation and to jointly tackle global challenges,” the White House official said.
Finer stated that India and the United States are natural allies and that the two countries are ready to tackle the challenges and grab the opportunity of this historic moment together.
“In collaboration with other like-minded partners, our countries will shape the future, aiming for a more open and prosperous world, one that is more secure, stable, and resilient.” “This provides a brief overview of the highlights of the partnership as we see them,” he said.
As the largest defense partner, India, he said, saw the two countries confer on a regular basis to assess regional changes and put in place an infrastructure to cooperate more closely through joint exercises, information sharing, logistics networks, and interoperable communication systems.
“We continue to strengthen India’s status as a major defence partner through defence industrial cooperation that Co-develops and co-produces important military capabilities for both of our countries,” Finer said.
“Second, our Strategic Technology Partnership. I know you’re all aware of our pathbreaking initiative on critical emerging technologies, ICET, ….which has already catalysing government, business and university cooperation in defence space semiconductors, advanced telecommunications biotechnology, emerging technologies like AI and quantum to foster an open, accessible and secure technology ecosystem,” he said.
Finer stated that this technology ecosystem in areas such as 5G will provide advanced communications choices that are consistent with their shared democratic principles to countries other than the US and India.
“Third, the United States and India share a common vision to decarbonize our economies and deploy clean energy, which is obviously reflected in all of our countries’ 2030 targets for climate action and energy,” he said.
Energy transitions in countries other than India and the United States may have a greater global impact.
“Together, we are pushing each other to develop and deploy innovative solutions to strengthen climate security, expand peaceful uses of civil nuclear energy and unlock climate finance solutions, to mobilise the information technologies and the resources we need to create the clean energy economy of the future,” Finer said.
“Fourth, as two of the world’s foremost centres of innovation, we are driving prosperity together,” he said, adding that bilateral trade last year was USD 191 billion, which has nearly doubled since 2014.
According to him, India’s G-20 leadership has reinvigorated focus on strengthening multilateralism and international collaboration to address global challenges and accomplish the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
“Fifth, we are welcoming new educational partnerships and taking steps to support the growing demand for travel between our countries,” he added.
According to Finer, the US embassy gave 125,000 visas to Indian students last year, a record, and Indian students are on track to become the largest foreign student community in the US soon.
“Our relationship is also grounded in values that are cherished by both our people and our founders: democracy, pluralism tolerance, openness and respect for human rights.
“These enable us to work together and to work together with civil societies and NGOs, to build a more resilient, more peaceful, more secure, democratic society,” Finer said.
Source:IE
