Introduction:

The first historic official state visit of PM Modi to USA from 21-23 June 2023 has been the most successful visit in taking the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership to a new level.  He is only the third foreign leader to receive the honour of the official state visit by Biden administration.  He became only one of the few foreign leaders, along with Churchill and Mandela, to address the joint session of US Congress more than once.  He received more than 75 applauses and 15 standing ovations during his address to the US Congress.  US Congressmen & women were seen trying to shake PM’s hand and click selfies with him.  This also illustrates his popularity and the bipartisan support for PM Modi and India.

Outcomes:

As far as the outcomes of the visit, an analysis of the 58 long paragraphs in the Joint Statement issued after the official talks between PM Modi and President Biden is required.

The most substantive outcomes from PM’s US visit were agreements on technology, defence and space.

One key element was technology cooperation, which featured prominently the discussion between India and the US.  One theme which ran through the visit was the exceptional warmth and hospitality the US President Biden and the first Lady Jill Biden extended to PM Modi.

In fact, advanced technology cut across all domains ranging from defence to space and energy -was one of the most important substantive outcome.

India and US launched public-private Joint Task Forces, one on the development and deployment of Open Radio Access Networks (RAN) -- a new approach to building the mobile networks that are needed to connect smartphones and devices to the internet and other users to break the Chinese stranglehold on telecom gear - and one on advanced telecoms research and development. India's Bharat 6G and the US Next G Alliance would co-lead this public-private research.  

On Quantum, Advanced Computing, and Artificial Intelligence, India and the United States have also established a Joint Indo-US Quantum Coordination Mechanism to facilitate joint research between the public and private sectors across both our countries.

To support the US-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET), the US-India Commercial Dialogue will launch a new "Innovation Handshake" to connect each country's start-up ecosystems.

Another area of important outcome has been people-to-people ties.  Both India and the US have agreed that the latter will start the process to open two new consulates in India -- one in Ahmedabad and one in Bengaluru.  Meanwhile, India will open its consulates in Seattle and two other places, to be determined.

PM Modi held discussions with US President Joe Biden, focusing on crucial issues such as climate change, trade, and regional security. Several important agreements and partnerships were announced during the visit, including collaborations in technology, healthcare, and defence sectors. The visit serves as a significant milestone in further enhancing the strategic partnership between India and the United States.

Technology featured in talks, not in a limited way but technology cooperation across the ecosystem. This included technology transfer, services and working together in research among other domains.

To strengthen semiconductor supply chains, Micron Technology, a prominent American chipmaker, with support from the India Semiconductor Mission, will invest more than $800 million toward a new $2.75 billion semiconductor assembly and test facility in India.

The visit was extremely rich in form and more rich in substance, the trip was "path-breaking." The various deals, including in defence, also highlight the visit's achievements. 

Technology space also continues into Defence, where the landmark announcement was done by GE of signing of an MoU with the HAL for production of GE 414 aero-engine for India's light combat aircraft. This is a major game changer for India

India will also be joining Artemis Accords, a US-led effort to send humans to the moon again by 2025, with the ultimate goal of expanding space exploration to Mars and beyond.

India joins 26 other countries committed to peaceful, sustainable, and transparent cooperation that will enable exploration of the Moon, Mars, and beyond. NASA will provide advanced training to Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) astronauts with the goal of launching a joint effort to the International Space Station in 2024.

There were roughly 20 to 25 areas of technology partnership that have been identified in the joint statement as a direct result of the discussion between the two leaders earlier in the White House.

The US welcomed India as the newest partner of the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), established to accelerate the development of diverse and sustainable critical energy minerals supply chains globally through targeted financial and diplomatic support of strategic projects along the value chain. 

In the discussions with Joe Biden on various issues concerning both countries, PM Modi stressed upon the need for the international community to recognise that the people who sponsor terrorism and support terrorism, they continued to pose a serious challenge to the safety and security of our societies and have to be very sternly and firmly dealt with.

Our trade had also been another area of priority discussions between the two countries.  One of the key elements in this has been that six WTO disputes between India and the U.S. were resolved. There have also been cooperative understandings with regard to up-skilling of employees’ arrangements between the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Indian Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, announcements of substantial investments by companies like Boeing, 100 million in this case on infrastructure and programs to train pilots in India - a fairly important set of announcement.

PM Modi spoke of the visit as a new chapter of relations between India and US.  He also spoke of new direction and energy.  He emphasized on the strong and futuristic partnership.  Resilient supply chain were an important aspect mentioned in his speeches; mutual trust and shared strategic priorities; friendship between the two leaders; the leadership connect, which was one of the principle drivers of such a rapid and large set of achievements. The strong strategic partnership, the leadership connect, President Biden himself mentioned that both India and USA have democracy in their DNA – of the value based relationship which also delivers.  These sentiments were reflected in the substantive outcomes mentioned above.

As is customary, PM Modi addressed a diaspora meeting in Washington D.C.  He thanked the Indian-American community for the success of his visit.  Modi had followed the tradition of addressing diaspora since his first visit to US in 2014, when he addressed a big meeting at Madison Square Garden in New York in September 2014.  One had assisted in that meeting from behind the scene, as one was then CG in Atlanta for the ten southern US states.  The India-American community of 4 million remains the most dynamic in the Indian diaspora and plays a key role in Indo-US relations.

Assessment:

To sum up, PM Modi’s visit to US would rank as the most successful visit by him abroad.  It could be also seen as one of the most important foreign policy achievements of his 9 year tenure as India-US relations were strategically upgraded.

It is to the credit of President Biden that he ignored the criticism by 75 fellow Democrats who called on him to raise India’s human rights record with Modi.  Washington’s grand reception of PM Modi despite some unease within highlights the clarity of America’s focus on the geo-strategic value of a deeper relationship with India.

It is important to ensure that all agreements need to be implemented, as both US and India go into the election year in 2024.  India has been prompt to start the kick-off acquisition process of 31 armed drones from US in early July.

Internationally, Modi and Biden have nudged India and US towards a possible joint construction of a stable Asian balance of power system.  Close defence relations between India and USA could be a possible deterrent against an aggressive China.

During PM Modi’s visit to USA, former US President Obama, in an interview to CNN, stated that the protection of Muslim minority in a majority – Hindu India would be worth raising in Modi’s meeting with the US President Biden.  He also said that without such protection, there was a strong possibility that India at some point starts pulling apart.  Modi, at a press conference with Biden had denied any discrimination against minorities under his government.   FM Sitharaman called Obama’s remarks hypocritical and that Obama had bombed several Muslim majority countries during his Presidency.  Also, PM Modi has received highest honour from six Muslim nations.

 Domestically, the opposition parties were quite busy with a meeting in Patna during Modi’s visit to USA to work out their strategy against him in 2024.  Only Omar Abdullah said at the press conference in Patna that it is good for PM Modi to talk to democracy in USA, but in Kashmir there was President’s rule for the last five years.  The Economic Times carried a survey with supporters of opposition parties, where the majority supported Modi’s visit to USA.  It seems that domestically a large majority seem to support PM Modi’s US visit.

It is worth noting that India was able to achieve several substantive agreements despite not being an ally of USA.  It also preserved its strategic autonomy by not criticizing Russia or the Ukraine war on US soil.

After the visit, President Biden tweeted - “The friendship between the United States and India is among the most consequential in the world.  And it’s stronger, closer and more dynamic than ever”.  PM Modi responded by tweeting that – “I fully agree with you, @POTUS @JoeBiden!  Friendship between our countries is a force of global good.  It will make a planet better and more sustainable.  The ground covered in my recent visit will strengthen our bond even more”.

This successful visit of PM Modi and the agreements reached, especially in defence, has upset China though it, as usual, couched in diplomatic language said that - “it has been China’s long-standing position that military cooperation between states should not undermine regional peace and stability, targeting any third party, or even harm the interests of any third party”.  The Chinese state paper ‘Global Times’ was more direct in commenting that India was turning a US pawn against its dignity.  Pakistan reportedly requested China for more UAVs and drones.  Their reaction is on expected lines.  It does not take away from the fact that PM Modi’s visit was very successful and path-breaking.