USA-India Ties
USA-India ties are considered one of the most strategic relationships. On the international plane, the USA supports India’s emergence as a leading global power and a vital partner in promoting a peaceful, stable, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. A closer look would reveal the fact that with time, the USA-India relations have become increasingly multi-faceted which reflects cooperation in different areas including trade, defense and security, education, science and technology, civil nuclear energy, space technology and applications, environment, health, and many other areas.
Growth in the USA-India Relations
The USA-India relationship reached a substantial height during the tenure of President John F. Kennedy. The congenial relationship continued even after President Kennedy. His successor, President Johnson also walked in the same line and maintained a cordial relationship with India in September 2000; the Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited the United States. The dynamic relationship of the US and India found a new path in the year of January 2004 when the United States and India launched the Next Steps in Strategic Partnership (NSSP). It was a significant milestone in the process of transformation of the status of bilateral relationship and laid a blueprint for further progress.
USA-India relations have furthered strengthened under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. After Modi took over as the Prime Minister of India, President Barack Obama extended his congratulations to him over the telephone and invited him to visit the United States. Prime Minister Modi visited the United States from 27–30 September 2014. Undoubtedly, PM Modi’s visit acted as a boosting factor in revamping the USA-India relationship. As a counter visit, President Obama visited India and he became the first USA President to be the Chief Guest at the 66th Republic Day celebrations of India held on 26 January 2015.
Prime Minister Modi again visited the United States in 2016 and met President Obama in the Oval Office, at the White House, in Washington DC, on June 07, 2016. Prime Minister Modi while visiting the United States addressed a joint session of the Congress and highlighted the common traits of both democracies and long-term friendship between the two countries. In the following year, viz. on June 26, 2017, Prime Minister Modi again visited the United States of America and met USA President Donald Trump.
After a gap of one year, Prime Minister Modi again visited the USA in 2019. This visit, popularly known as Howdy Modi. Along with President Trump, Prime Minister Modi reaffirmed Indian American ties, with an emphasis on increased military cooperation with the initiation of the Tiger Triumph exercises. The bilateral relationship between the USA and India further improved by President Trump’s visit to India in February 2020. The visit was termed Namaste Trump.
USA-India Ties under President Joe Biden
Joe Biden’s engagement with India began long before he became President. After becoming President in January 2021, Biden took several steps that had positive impacts in the domain of bilateral relationships. Biden and Modi met on several occasions and spoke on the telephone regularly. President Biden and PM Modi emphasized the importance of economic cooperation and technology collaboration in their conversations on April 11, 2022, and February 14, 2023.
Some of the recent highlights of the USA-India relationship:
- PM Modi visited the USA in September 2021 for the first in-person Quad Leaders’ Summit and had a bilateral meeting with President Biden.
- G7 Summit in Germany on 27 June 2022. Quad Leaders’ Summit in Tokyo, Japan on 24 May 2022 including a bilateral meeting.
- Sidelines of G20 Summit in Bali on 15 November 2022 .
- G7 and Quad Leaders’ Summit on 20th May 2023 in Hiroshima, Japan.
- Telephonic conversation on 14 February 2023.
- Virtual Summit for Democracy on 29th March. 2023.
- PM Modi made his first State Visit to the USA from 21-23 June 2023 at the invitation of President Biden, after his instatement as the President.
- President Biden visited New Delhi from 8-10 September 2023 to attend the G-20 Leaders’ Summit. President Biden and PM Modi had a bilateral meeting and co-hosted a group of G20 leaders to accelerate investments in high-quality infrastructure projects and the development of 2 economic corridors through the India Middle East Europe Economic Connectivity Corridor and the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGI).
Conclusion
A look into the domain of the U.S.-India partnership would reveals the fact that it is founded on a shared commitment to freedom, democratic principles, equal treatment of all citizens, human rights, and the rule of law. The most important dimension of the strong relationship between the USA and India may be attributed to the fact that the United States strongly supports India’s emergence as a leading global power and vital partner in efforts to ensure that the Indo-Pacific is a region of peace, stability, and growing prosperity. So far as the USA is concerned, they recognized India as a key to its strategic interests. The two countries, are the world’s largest democracies and both are committed to political freedom protected by popularly elected representative government. The United States of America and India have a common interest in the free flow of commerce and resources, including through the vital sea-lanes of the Indian Ocean. As a part of the joint venture, in recent years, India has conducted large joint military exercises with the USA in the Indian Ocean.
