New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden jointly called for freedom of navigation, especially through vital sea lanes in the Middle East, as India formally ratified the clean economy and fair economy pillars of the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), and both nations launched a roadmap to build clean energy supply chains.
The two leaders met on Saturday (September 21) shortly after Modi arrived in Philadelphia at Biden’s personal residence. Earlier that day, the US president had hosted Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at his home.
This marked the first occasion President Biden hosted foreign leaders at the white colonial house he built on the outskirts of Wilmington, Delaware, around twenty-five years ago.
The United States’ partnership with India is stronger, closer, and more dynamic than any time in history.
Prime Minister Modi, each time we sit down, I’m struck by our ability to find new areas of cooperation. Today was no different. pic.twitter.com/TdcIpF23mV
— President Biden (@POTUS) September 21, 2024
I thank President Biden for hosting me at his residence in Greenville, Delaware. Our talks were extremely fruitful. We had the opportunity to discuss regional and global issues during the meeting. @JoeBiden pic.twitter.com/WzWW3fudTn
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 21, 2024
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In addition to Prime Minister Modi, the Indian delegation comprised external affairs minister S. Jaishankar, foreign secretary Vikram Misri, and India’s ambassador to the US, Vinay Kwatra. The US delegation included secretary of state Antony Blinken, national security advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan, and US ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti.
An Indian readout noted that the two leaders “discussed ways to further enhance bilateral cooperation in areas of mutual interest and exchanged views on global and regional issues, including the Indo-Pacific region and beyond.”
It added that Modi “conveyed his appreciation for the unparalleled contributions made by President Biden in advancing the India-US partnership.”
Biden had withdrawn from the presidential election in July, leading the Democratic Party to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris for the upcoming November elections.
Also read: Canadian Intelligence Report Accuses India, China of ‘Heavy Interference’ in Domestic Politics
Interestingly, India’s NSA, Ajit Doval, a regular presence at all of the prime minister’s diplomatic engagements, did not accompany the delegation to the United States this time.
No official explanation was given for his absence, despite NSAs from both nations playing crucial roles in leading key bilateral initiatives. Some media platforms have cited unidentified “sources” as saying Doval’s conspicuous absence was because of the ongoing assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. But it comes close on the heels of a New York court’s summons in a civil suit filed by the US-based Sikh lawyer Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, an advocate of Khalistan.
Modi’s last visit to the United States took place in June 2023, marking his first state visit to Washington, D.C., where he was honoured with a state dinner and addressed the US Congress.
The major outcomes of that visit centred on defence collaboration, including the joint production of fighter jet engines and military drones.
Later that month, on June 30, Indian businessman Nikhil Gupta was arrested upon arrival at Prague’s international airport on charges that were eventually disclosed by a US court in November. He was accused of orchestrating, on behalf of an unnamed Indian government official, a plot to hire a hitman to assassinate Pannun, according to the unsealed chargesheet.
US prosecutors also connected the plot against Pannun with the shooting of Canadian national Hardeep Singh Nijjar, for whose murder Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blamed Indian government agents. While India vehemently denied Trudeau’s allegations, it established a committee to investigate the US charges. More than 10 months later, Gupta is now in US custody, but the findings of the Indian investigation are yet to be made public.
Despite India’s denial, the shadow of the alleged plot to kill the lawyer of a proscribed group hangs over Modi’s ongoing visit.
On September 18, 2024, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York issued summonses to NSA Doval and other defendants in a civil suit filed by Pannun. The following day, senior White House officials met with Sikh-American activists to discuss threats against the community, including their perspectives on “conversations” with India about the alleged plot.
There was, however, no public mention on whether this issue was discussed in the bilateral talks. Neither was any related question asked by the Indian media at the press briefing of the foreign secretary.
The “Joint Factsheet” issued after the formal talks stated that Biden “commended” Modi for his visit to Ukraine.
“The Leaders reaffirmed their support for the freedom of navigation and the protection of commerce, including critical maritime routes in the Middle East where India will assume co-lead in 2025 of the Combined Task Force 150 to work with Combined Maritime Forces to secure sea lanes in the Arabian Sea,” said the bilateral document.
Since November 2023, Yemen’s Houthi forces have disrupted crucial shipping lines in the Red Sea by attacking vessels passing through the maritime corridor, causing bottlenecks in global supply chains. The Indian Navy has had to carry out several high-sea operations to rescue ships targeted by the Houthis.
Additionally, the factsheet mentioned that the two leaders “welcomed India’s signature and ratification of the Agreements under Pillar III, Pillar IV, and the overarching Agreement on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF).”
Both leaders emphasised that the IPEF aims to promote “resilience, sustainability, inclusiveness, economic growth, fairness, and competitiveness of the economies of its signatories.”
Launched in 2022 by the US and 13 other nations, the IPEF is a trade network that emerged partly in response to concerns over the US losing influence in the region, especially after its withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in 2017, and the subsequent formation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) by China and other Asian countries in 2020.
In IPEF, India has opted out of Pillar I, which relates to trade issues. The two Pillars on which India submitted its instruments of ratification were clean energy, infrastructure, tax and anti-corruption issues.
At the post-talks briefing, Misri flagged the release of a “Roadmap For US-India Initiative to Build Safe and Secure Global Clean Energy Supply Chains” as a key outcome.
“Under this, the United States has agreed to leverage nearly $1 billion in multilateral funding guarantees. This is to accelerate the expansion of safe and secure clean energy supply chains through US and Indian manufacturing of clean energy technologies and components,” he said.
Furthermore, the two leaders expressed their anticipation for the signing of the Critical Minerals Memorandum of Understanding at the upcoming US-India Commercial Dialogue and committed to advancing bilateral cooperation to secure resilient critical minerals supply chains.
On the defence front, the joint fact sheet revealed that the leaders welcomed the conclusion of the Memorandum of Agreement regarding the deployment of liaison officers and the commencement of the deployment process of the first liaison officer from India to the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM).
“They also welcomed the incorporation of new technologies and capabilities, including a first-ever demonstration of the Javelin and Stryker systems in India, on the margins of the ongoing bilateral army Yudh Abhyas exercise,” the document stated.
The United States has returned over 300 stolen antiquities to India, and three were showcased at Biden’s home during Modi’s visit.
