Why in News?

On the sidelines of the Quad leaders’ summit, the Indian PM held a meeting with United States President Joe Biden.

As this meeting between the two world leaders may have been the last before Biden leaves the White House in January 2025, it is necessary to look into how the Biden presidency has shaped US-Indian relations.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• How did Biden Mould US-Indian Relations Prior to Taking Office as US President?
• Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency for India - US Ties
• India - US Ties During the Biden’s Presidency
• Technology Cooperation Between India - US
• What are the Issues in the India - US Ties?

How did Biden Mould US-Indian Relations Prior to Taking Office as US President?

• Before becoming Vice President to President Barack Obama:
  • In 2006, Biden stated that by 2020, the United States and India will be the two closest nations in the world.
  • In 2008, he (then Senator) worked with both Democrats and Republicans to get the landmark India-US nuclear deal approved in the US Congress.
• As a VP to President Barack Obama:
  • In 2013, he visited India and met the then Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh) and Vice President (Hamid Ansari).
  • In 2020, as the Democratic Presidential nominee, Biden said that he would stand with India in confronting various threats along its borders.

Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency for India - US Ties:

• President Biden inherited a strong India-US relationship from his predecessor Donald Trump.
• Aligning Washington and New Delhi’s positions, Trump framed China as a strategic rival and adversary to the US for the first time. Biden carried Trump’s legacy forward in this regard.
• Trump revived the Quad grouping (India, the US, Australia, and Japan) in 2017.
  • In 2021, Biden elevated the Quad to the leaders’ level - the highest in international diplomacy, and hosted the first Quad leaders’ summit.

India - US Ties During the Biden’s Presidency:

• Interaction between top leaders:
  • Since the first Quad leaders’ summit in 2021, Biden and the Indian PM have met six times at the leaders’ level, including four times in person.
  • On the bilateral front, the two have interacted at least 10 times, including twice virtually.
• Strategic alignment vis-à-vis China: In the post-pandemic world, both countries wanted to de-risk themselves from future China-related disruptions, and become a part of a resilient global supply chain.
• Advantage to India:
  • Since the end of World War II, no major country has prospered without technological assistance from Washington.
  • The USA provided considerable assistance in the rise of China as well.
  • India also wished to be part of the US-led tech ecosystem.

Technology Cooperation Between India - US:

• Initiative for Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET):
  • In 2023, the two National Security Advisers launched the iCET in Washington to -
    • Facilitate strategic technology collaborations in critical and emerging technologies, and
    • Enable co-development and co-production in the tech sphere.
  • It aims to connect the two countries’ respective innovation ecosystems, especially in AI, quantum, telecom, space, biotech, semiconductors, and emerging defence technologies.
  • After multiple NSA-level meetings (the most recent one in June 2024) the outcomes of iCET are now visible.
• The outcomes of iCET:
  • Setting up a semiconductor fabrication plant in India:
    • The Indian PM’s recent visit saw the signing of an agreement for setting up a semiconductor fabrication plant in India.
    • This will be enabled by support from the India Semiconductor Mission as well as a strategic technology partnership between Bharat Semi, 3rdiTech, and the US Space Force.
    • This plant would make chips for use in national security, next generation telecommunications and green energy applications.
  • Both are working on a broad range of technology partnerships:
    • From joint research conducted by NASA and ISRO on the International Space Station, to a pact for critical minerals supply chains and emerging digital technologies in Asia and Africa.
    • There has also been progress regarding a deal for 31 remotely piloted aircraft which India would acquire from the US.
• Significance of the iCET:
  • The fab titled Shakti (or power) would not only be the first technology partnership between Indian businesses and the US Space Force, but also a first in the Quad.
  • This marks a “glass-ceiling broken” in tech diplomacy, by going into true chip fabrication. 

What are the Issues in the India-US Ties?

• The alleged assassination plot against US-based pro-Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has been a thorny issue. Days before the Indian PM’s visit to the US,
  • A US court issued summons to NSA Ajit Doval, after Pannun filed a civil suit seeking damages for the alleged assassination plot.
  • A group of pro-Khalistan separatists visited the White House on the eve of the Indian PM’s US visit.
• India must resolve this matter in order to allay Washington's concerns regarding New Delhi's democratic credentials.
• However, the two countries’ strategic alignment vis-à-vis China means that such challenges are only minor wrinkles to be ironed out.