PM Modi’s state visit to take India US partnership to “next level”, says Ambassador Sandhu

On the invitation of US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in the US next week. All eyes are now on the next chapter in the bilateral relations between the two countries and the message that will be sent out of Washington.

Indian Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu on Wednesday (local time) said that during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming state visit to the US, the “next level of the partnership will be visible”. “You will see the personal chemistry reflected in a number of interactions. In fact, this will show perhaps the maximum interaction between Prime Minister Modi and the President of the United States.”

As cabinet members and senior officials are looking into the nuts and bolts of the state visit’s “outcomes” and are making sure New Delhi and Washington are moving in the right direction, Sandhu highlighted the significance of India-US partnership in the global context in various spheres such as trade, defence and strategic cooperation, technology, higher education and clean energy.

“The underlying aspect is going to be much more strategic understanding,” Sandhu asserted.
Experts stress on how Washington is working to deepen ties with the world’s largest democracy, forging military and industrial links with India as a key counterweight to China’s dominance, even as the two democracies differ on how to deal with Russia’s Ukraine invasion. And this visit would further nail in stronger ties as the United States looks to blunt China’s growing assertiveness in the region. The relationship between the two democracies and their ties have steadily transformed and elevated into a strategic technology partnership.

“Fifteen years ago, we just wouldn’t have thought about it. But today, we are talking about the stuff which was unimaginable…now you’re talking about critical and emerging technologies, and data and AI that include semiconductors, quantum 5G, and 6G telecom sector. Technology also reflects trust and confidence between the two sides. And I think this aspect is the one which is going to really show the deepening of our relationship,” the top Indian envoy noted.

PM Modi’s trip to the US is being billed as a milestone in relations between the two democracies and the Indian envoy signals that the visit next week will be historic.

“This is indeed a historic and path-breaking visit. I use these terminologies by fully looking into them. You will see both on the substantive side and on the ceremonial side that it will be historic,” Sandhu added.
Meanwhile, US National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan recently said that “As we look ahead to the state visit that PM Modi will be embarking upon in Washington next week, a number of the deliverables at that visit are not just bullet points on a page, they are fundamentally designed to remove obstacles in defence and high-tech trades and in taking away obstacles that have stood in the way of better collaboration among our scientists and researchers.”

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