India becomes indispensable to US as counterweight to China: The Economist

With its economy growing with full potential, India has become indispensable to US efforts to assert itself in Asia and deter Chinese aggression, according to The Economist.
Underlining how the Indian diaspora is spread from the US to Gulf, The Economist, in its report states that India’s ascent is an uplifting story. The Economist is a British weekly newspaper printed in demi tab format and published digitally.
According to the publication, India is one of the fastest-growing economies, its GDP is expected to overtake Japan’s and Germany’s by 2028, even as it treads a novel path towards getting rich.
India’s exports are driven by services, of which it is the seventh-largest supplier in the world.
Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the publication highlights that India’s infrastructure has grown by leaps and bounds, and manufacturing may pick up as supply chains diversify from China.
For instance, Apple assembles 7 per cent of iPhones in India, The Economist says.
When it bestows economic benefits to a competitor who later turns against it, the US risks repeating its experience with China. That seems improbable.
India and China should remain close because of their shared suspicion of China. It would only strengthen China to refuse cooperation with India since its philosophy and democracy do not align with Western ideals. Additionally, it would demonstrate how poorly America has adapted to the impending multipolar world, according to The Economist.
The presidents of three of America’s top five business schools and Alphabet, IBM, and Microsoft CEOs are of Indian descent. The achievement of Indian Americans is reflected in the fact that 70 per cent of the general American population has a favourable opinion of India, compared to only 15 per cent for China.
The Quad, a security alliance that also consists of the United States, Australia, and Japan, includes India.
Another excellent example of India-US relations is the Biden administration’s initiatives to quicken technology transfer to India. By supporting India’s defence sector, America seeks to wean it off of obsolete Russian weaponry and provide other Asian democracies with a fresh, inexpensive supply of munitions.
The partnership between India and US has never been too close, however, the American leaders, both Republicans and Democrats would like it to be that way and anticipate a much closer relationship in future. After all India’s foreign policy has become assertive and the US also sees it as an indispensable accomplice in their rivalry with China, the Economist explains in its Asia section.
The recent visit of PM Modi to Washington is seen as an occasion when the two countries could strike some defence deals. PM Modi would also be one of the few foreign leaders, along with Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy to address the US Congress more than once.
The perception that India’s economy may now be beginning to realise its potential contributes to the country’s attraction.
Recently, India overtook the UK as the world’s fifth-largest economy. And the American multinational investment bank and financial services company, Goldman Sachs had projected that India’s GDP will overtake the euro area’s in 2051 and America’s by 2075. That assumes a growth rate of 5.8 per cent for the next five years, 4.6 per cent in the 2030s and lower beyond.
Nevertheless, India must prepare itself for increased scrutiny as it becomes a more powerful nation.

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