India, US agree to partner over critical, emerging technologies
Modi extends a separate invite to US def units to join ‘Make in India’ initiative
India and the US on Tuesday announced a major partnership to boost cooperation in critical and emerging technologies between their National Security Councils after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden vowed to work together for a more prosperous, free, connected and secure world.
In a meeting with Biden on the sidelines of the Quad summit in Tokyo, Modi described the India-US relationship as truly a “partnership of trust” and said he was confident that the friendship will continue to be a “force for good” for global peace and stability as well as for the well-being of mankind. On his part, the US President told the Prime Minister that he is committed to making America’s partnership with India among the closest on earth, saying there is so much that the two countries “can and will do together”.
In another significant move, India and the US also extended the longstanding Vaccine Action Programme (VAP) until 2027. Separately, the White House announced India joining the Combined Military Forces-Bahrain as an associate member. A White House readout said Biden condemned Russia’s “unjustifiable war” against Ukraine and that the leaders discussed how to cooperate to manage disruptions caused by the war, especially the rise in energy and food prices to protect their respective citizens and the world.
In the talks, Modi invited the US industries to partner with India to manufacture in the defence sector under the Make in India and self-reliant India programmes, adding bilateral trade and investment are expanding continuously, but it is still much below their potential. Both New Delhi and Washington announced the launch of the India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) to facilitate outcome-oriented cooperation and that the new mechanism will be co-led by India’s National Security Council Secretariat and the US National Security Council.
Moreover, in a clear message to an aggressive China, the leaders of the Quad grouping, including Modi and Biden, on Tuesday voiced their firm opposition to “any provocative or unilateral attempt” to change the status quo and called for peaceful settlement of disputes without resorting to threat or use of force.
The mutual trust and determination among the Quad member countries is giving new energy to democratic forces and the work of the grouping is encouraging a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said here on Tuesday at the second in-person summit of the four-nation coalition.
“Quad is pursuing a constructive agenda for the Indo-Pacific region. With this, the image of Quad as a
‘force for good’ will be strengthened even more,” he said. The leaders of Quad, comprising India, Australia, the US and Japan, met in Japanese capital in the midst of the geopolitical flux triggered by Russian invasion of Ukraine and the steady decline in each member country’s bilateral ties with China.
Though US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida spoke strongly against the Russian attack on Ukraine, Modi did not touch upon the issue. “In such a short span of time, the Quad has made an important place on the world stage. Today the scope of Quad has become wider and the form has become effective,” Modi said.
“Our mutual trust, our determination, is giving new energy and enthusiasm to the democratic forces. Our mutual cooperation at the level of Quad is promoting a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region, which is a common objective of all of us,” he added.
Modi also referred to increasing cooperation among the Quad nations notwithstanding the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Despite the adverse conditions of COVID-19, we have increased mutual coordination in many areas like vaccine delivery, climate action, supply chain resilience, disaster response and economic cooperation. This is ensuring peace, prosperity and stability in the Indo-Pacific,” he said.