Indian Prime Minister Modi’s visit next week will provide an opportunity for both sides to elevate their focus on bilateral commercial and strategic technology partnerships, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said yesterday.
Areas ripe for deeper bilateral cooperation include defense, medical supply chains, clean energy and space, she told the US-India Business Council’s annual meeting yesterday.
President Biden will be hosting the Indian Prime Minister for a state visit on June 22. Mr. Modi also is scheduled to address a joint session of Congress.
The Administration is trying to strengthen economic ties with India as an alternative to China.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the upcoming state visit “historic” during remarks Monday evening opening the conference.
“We see the importance of the partnership in a shared commitment to address regional and global challenges – promoting health security, working with our Quad partners to build a free, open
secure, prosperous Indo-Pacific where people, where goods, where ideas can travel freely and rules are applied fairly,” Mr. Blinken said.
The Administration is convinced “that at the heart of the strategic relationship between our countries are economic ties,” he continued.
Bilateral trade reached a record $191 billion, making the United States the largest trading partner for India, Mr. Blinken noted. US companies have now invested at least $54 billion in India, while Indian companies have invested over $40 billion in the United States.
Reuters news service reported from New Delhi yesterday that the United States is set to remove obstacles that prevent smoother trade with India in critical areas such as defense and high technology, according to National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
Mr. Sullivan is in India to make final preparations for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming state visit. Next week’s discussions will include cooperation in areas like research and development, 5G and 6G telecommunication technology, semiconductor supply chains, artificial intelligence, advanced computing and biotechnology and “specifically on removing barriers to strategic trade,” he was quoted as saying.
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