IRIA News

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the United States and met with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House as the two leaders hailed a need for stronger U.S.-India partnership in the coming years.

Biden and Modi held a bilateral meeting on June 22, 2023, at the White House, engaging in discussions on a wide range of issues. The meeting was followed by the state dinner. While speaking at a joint press briefing with the Indian prime minister, U.S. President Biden said that “The prime minister and I had a good discussion about democratic values.”

Modi, a leader once denied a visa to travel to the U.S. because of concerns over human rights, was greeted with the highest level of diplomatic protocol by the United States.

During his two-day (June 21-22) visit, Modi met with the CEOs of major American companies, addressed the Indian-American community, delivered a speech at the joint session of the U.S. Congress, and led a Yoga event at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

With this visit, we are demonstrating once more how India and the United States are collaborating on nearly every human endeavor and delivering progress across the board.

Our bottom line is simple: We want people everywhere to have the opportunity to live in dignity. pic.twitter.com/LLR2dn1vp6

— President Biden (@POTUS) June 23, 2023

Concerns over India’s human rights violations

Modi’s visit to the U.S. was not without controversy due to India’s troubled past and present filled with human rights abuse. His speech at the Congress was boycotted by some liberal lawmakers, as they voiced their concerns about the Indian government’s treatment of minorities.

In the past, the Biden administration as well as many other international human rights organizations have directly criticized India’s Modi government and his political party BJP for human rights violations. Upon being asked about the alleged human rights abuses committed by Modi and his administration, President Biden said that he had a direct discussion about the issues with the Indian prime minister. In a vague answer, Biden said that “it’s a common democratic character of both our countries and our people, our diversity our culture our open, tolerant, robust debate.”

When the questions were put in front of the Indian prime minister about his government’s restriction on the freedom of expression and discrimination against minorities, Modi struck a defiant tone, saying he was “surprised” by the criticism. “We have always proved that democracy can deliver. And when I say deliver, this is regardless of caste, creed, religion, gender, there’s absolutely no space for discrimination,” he said. “And when you talk of democracy, if there are no human values, and there is no humanity, there are no human rights, then it’s not a democracy,” he added.

Economic agreements

Modi’s landmark visit to the U.S. was filled with new trade agreements and economic deals focusing on a range of industries from AI, and technology to defense and critical minerals. U.S. memory chip firm Micron Technology signed an $825 million investment contract with the Indian central government to set up a chip assembly and testing plant in Gujarat, its first factory in India.

India also joined the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), a U.S.-led partnership of more than 12 countries and the European Union that focuses on critical energy minerals supply chains. After its inclusion in the MSP, India is expected to receive investments from the partner states in the electric vehicle batteries and component manufacturing industry.

Military cooperation

China’s rise in the Indo-Pacific region is a driving factor behind the deepening ties between India and the United States. Modi’s recent trip to the U.S. particularly focused on bolstering the India-U.S. security partnership. During his visit, the Indian prime minister secured several procurement deals for crucial weapons, jets manufacturing as well as other military equipment.

India’s defense ministry approved plans to procure General Atomics MQ-9B High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAVs. Under the procurement deal, the MQ-9Bs will be assembled in India as General Atomics will establish a Comprehensive Global Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul (MRO) facility in India to support the country’s long-term goals of boosting indigenous defense capabilities.

The U.S. General Electric and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited signed an MoU for the manufacturing of the F-414 jet engines in India, for the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Light Combat Aircraft Mk 2. This initiative to manufacture F-414 engines in India will enable the greater transfer of U.S. jet engine technology than ever before.  

India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X)

In the backdrop of Modi’s visit to the U.S., the U.S. Department of Defense and the Indian Ministry of Defense launched the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X). A project defined as a network of universities, startups, industry, and think tanks, that will facilitate joint defense technology innovation and co-production of advanced defense technology between the respective industries of the two countries.

According to the factsheet released by the U.S. Department of Defense, INDUS-X seeks closer cooperation between private sectors and research institutions of the two countries to catalyze innovation within defense industrial bases. Pentagon said that through INDUS-X, the United States and India will strengthen ties between defense industrial ecosystems to make them more innovative, accessible, and resilient.