China, Ukraine, defence on PM-Biden bilateral agenda
The India-US corridor has been abuzz with speculation that the US President may be the chief guest at the Republic Day ceremony and attend Quad leaders’ summit.
US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will have a “rich and multifaceted” discussion that will take stock of the progress in India-United States relationship since Modi’s historic state visit to Washington DC, the progress in the defence and economic arena, the Chandrayaan mission, India’s and America’s diplomatic engagements with China, the US’s trilateral summit with Japan and South Korea held recently, developments in the Indo-Pacific, and the war in Ukraine, a senior US administration official has said.
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The two countries are also discussing ways to overcome differences on civil nuclear issues where India’s nuclear liability law remains a concern for American nuclear industry. While a deal is not yet done, there has been “clear progress” on the issue, the official indicated.
“The truth is that the two leaders have established an ambitious bilateral agenda for the two countries and an agenda that integrates the US and India into a larger framework of nations including the Quad. But it’s also fair to say that the two leaders have been close. My expectation is that we will we have a strong official visit, have a number of deliverables and follow-on work from the last summit and the other work that we have done since”, the official said. “Close personal ties” between the two leaders developed over time have enabled ambitious steps in recent months, demonstrated by the “care and attention” Biden gave to the Indian PM in June.
The two sides will also discuss a second visit by Biden early next year to India. The India-US corridor has been abuzz with speculation that the US President may be the chief guest at the Republic Day ceremony and attend the Quad leaders’ summit to be held in India in 2024.
Biden is travelling to India from September 7 to 10, before heading to Vietnam.
When asked about the bilateral leg of the September visit on the sidelines of the G20 summit, the official, alluding to Modi’s state visit, said that in the period after ambitious visits, there is often a tendency to get distracted and turn away from areas of hard work. “We can’t let that happen in the US-India relationship. We need to continue to follow on intensively. Much has happened since the visit, the absolutely historic moon landing of the Indian system. The steps in terms of investments from American firms in India, a number of things that we are working on in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. I think it would be fair to say that we are pressing forward across a broad range of areas and I think as much as anything else, the president and the PM will take stock where we are, what progress we have made, and perhaps they will identify areas that need greater focus.”
The US administration believes that there has been “substantial progress” in the defence arena and both sides will explore whether there are other steps to be taken
The leaders will also discuss China. The official said, “We obviously watched closely over the course of the last couple of months the intense diplomacy that’s taken place on between India and China around the Line of Actual Control. I think the President is going to want to be updated and briefed from PM Modi about how India’s side thinks those discussions have taken place, how they have gone.” The US, too, has stepped up its engagement with China, with four senior administration figures visiting Beijing in recent months and the American approach, which the official said was coming from a “position of strength”, is also likely to figure in the discussions.
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The recent trilateral summit between US, Japan and South Korea, hosted by Biden at Camp David, will also figure in the talks. “He will want to update the PM on those developments. Modi is always interested in developments in the Indo-Pacific and also they will talk about their shared goals and objectives in the Pacific given that India is also stepping up its engagements in critical countries in the South Pacific,” the official said. They will also discuss the war in Ukraine and share updates about how both sides see the war shaping up.
Asked if there had been discussions on civil-nuclear issues, the official acknowledged that both countries were in the final stage of talks, there had been progress, and the hope was that they will make some advance in areas where there wasn’t as much progress last time. “We are looking very closely at the civil nuclear issue.”
“It’s a very rich agenda. It’s multifaceted. It basically spans every element of our bilateral relationship and I think we want to use this opportunity to both take stock and serve as a catalyst for further progress,” the official added.