DRONES DEAL WITH US WILL BE KINGPIN

All eyes are on Monday’s summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump as the two world leaders prepare to meet, essentially to get to know each other and to set the tone for the future. While Trump makes no bones about his ‘America First’ policy, Modi swears by ‘Make in India.’ Modi had struck up a fine rapport with Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama, but Trump is evidently a far more difficult man to deal with, with a good measure of idiosyncrasies. That they would both strive to boost Indo-US relations is indicated by Trump’s description of Modi as a ‘true friend’ even though they have never met. For many years now, commerce is an over-riding factor in ties between the two countries and there would predictably be some movement towards that. One deal that would be closely watched is for India to initiate steps to purchase 22 unarmed drones for a price of $2 billion. The Indian navy wants the surveillance drones, variants of the Predator drones, to keep watch over the Indian Ocean for any China-Pak designs. The deal would be the first such purchase by a country that is not a member of North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The drone deal would require approval by US Congress.

India, a big buyer of U.S. arms that was recently named by Washington as a major defence ally, wants to protect its 7,500- km (4,700-mile) coastline as Beijing expands its maritime trade routes and Chinese submarines increasingly lurk in regional waters. Anticipating Pakistan’s opposition to the proposed deal, a senior White House official cautioned on Friday that any U.S. military transfer to India would not represent a threat to its rival neighbour Pakistan. Defence cooperation, the U.S. trade deficit with India, counter-terrorism efforts and regional tensions are expected to be discussed between the two leaders. India and the US will also discuss the sale of American fighter jets during Modi’s trip, in what could be the biggest deal since they began deepening defence ties more than a decade ago.

The Trump administration’s review of the visa programme for bringing to the U.S. highly skilled foreign workers is another solid bone of contention between the two countries. While the American position is yet to be clearly defined, the issue would predictably be passed over on grounds that it is a policy in the making which is still undergoing scrutiny and review. The rising anti-immigrant sentiment in the U.S. and the recent hate crimes are also expected to come up in talks. Considering that the private sector plays a big role in trade matters in the US, Modi’s meeting with a battery of influential US businessmen would also hopefully yield some potentially good deals. All in all, even though this is not a Modi visit high in tangibles, it would throw up possibilities for a boost in Indo-US cooperation. It would also offer an opportunity to study Trump’s mind on Pakistan, China and Afghanistan and on US role in the region.