The recent meeting between Prime Minister Modi and President Biden on the sidelines of the Quad summit at Tokyo reflected a mutual respect for each other’s perceptions on varying issues impacting global peace and stability.
The recent open acknowledgement by President Joe Biden that US-India ties will be among the “closest on earth” is being perceived as absolute change in their approaches. It is, perhaps, for the first time in the last 75 years that the United States has shown a greater degree of trust, which obviously has been replacing the past experiences of mutual suspicion and mistrust. This transformation, technically speaking, has happened mainly in the last few years where India has witnessed elevation of its status in the international system across the spectrum. The changing dynamics of geopolitics has made India more resilient and the rest of the world has been eyeing India, finding the reasons for its success. Undoubtedly, India has learnt the art of working with the multiple poles of power in the international system. Despite the fact that India and the United States have been converging on pertinent important themes impacting global peace and stability, India in no way is showing signs of tilting towards the United States. Such reflection of India’s maturity in its diplomatic maneuvering has been witnessed a number of times while dealing with the rest of the world.
India and the United States have converged on a number of pertinent and important areas impacting global peace and stability including the challenges to building a stable Indo-Pacific security architecture. Sharing the same perspective and working together to safeguard their shared values and common interests not only at the bilateral level between India and the United States but also with like-minded countries is again perceived as India’s global responsibility. India’s success at various fronts in dealing with the emerging challenges has confirmed that India has become a part of the solution to the global problems. The launch of Indo-Pacific Economic framework for Prosperity (IPEP) seems to be a great initiative undertaken by the US where India is ready to work closely with all partner countries.
The recent meeting between Prime Minister Modi and President Biden on the sidelines of the Quad summit at Tokyo reflected a mutual respect for each other’s perceptions on varying issues impacting global peace and stability. It was also a symbolic assertion and a great message to the rest of the world that an India-US convergence on pertinent strategic areas would be in global interest, whether it has to do with combating Covid-19 or addressing the climate change issues. Both the leaders did acknowledge that the situations in Ukraine is very worrying and how the ongoing conflict has changed the economic landscape of the global order. India’s position on Ukraine among the Quad countries was well acknowledged.
India’s bid to make its “Make in India” effective, having certain specific deliverable outputs was reflected when Prime Minister Modi focused on the need to strengthen the manufacturing sector and see how the US industries can partner to create a win-win situation. The launch of India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (ICET) to facilitate outcome-oriented cooperation is something completely different than the past in terms of US approaches to its commitment to work with India. The days are not very far when the US will start engaging with India on all their fundamental research and share technological know-how so that there will be no barrier in promoting mutual interests. Such process will help getting intangibles culminated into tangibles.
It is now becoming obvious that India and the US will become the new poles of the post pandemic global order. It must be emphasised here that China’s desire of becoming unipolar in Asia in a multipolar world does not seem to be feasible in the changing dynamics of geopolitics. China’s growing assertion that it will attain supremacy and primacy in the international system is getting reflected in their behavioral patterns. India’s rise has become a dominant factor in checkmating China’s strategic aspirations. The US has been realising the new phenomenon of India’s rise as a responsible player of the international system.
The United States has finally understood India’s predicament and deteriorating regional security environment. Over the years, a strong foundation has been built in Indo-US relations with a multifaceted dimension such as political, economic, strategic, nuclear and diplomatic. The Indo-US strategic engagement has come a long way and is predicated on the fact that India has not engaged in any proliferation despite not being a member of Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
There was also a deeper commitment made by the US that it will be continuing with its supply of conventional weaponry to India. Though India would very much like to transition itself from a net importer of conventional weaponry to a net exporter of these weapons, it will take its own course where Indo-US engagement will be of utmost significance. The Inter Agency Task Force, which has been a part of the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI), has been seriously engaging in identifying the parameters for such defence cooperation. Defence co-production involving critical technology will remain a challenge but the commitment shown on the part of the United States towards India is something worth mentioning.
The irritants which existed in the past have been completely dissipated. The level of political engagement in particular has taken a different shape. India’s confidence level has grown at a phenomenal pace. The degree of mutual understanding between India and the US has grown remarkably. It seems there is a geopolitical necessity to keep gaining momentum in the bilateral partnership. It must be emphasised here that India and the US together will have to work to see how China fails in achieving all its strategic objectives. Such constructive engagement will dissuade China to adopt coercive, provocative or unilateral actions that seeks to change the status quo. India and the United States will be confronting strategic risks more in the Indo-Pacific region if they do not converge and become proactive in assuming the leadership role in building a rule based global order. How China will be brought under the ambit of a rules-based global order will remain a difficult task ahead for both India and the United States in the 21st century. The tectonic shift in the Indo-US relations at 75 will be significant for global peace and stability.
Prof Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit is the Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi.
Dr Arvind Kumar is Professor of United States Studies at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi.