Affirming a vision of the US and India as among the closest partners, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden on Thursday said that the diverse partnership between the two nations will serve the global good.
The US-India Comprehensive Global and Strategic Partnership are anchored in a new level of trust and mutual understanding and enriched by the warm bonds of family and friendship that inextricably link the two countries together, said a joint statement issued by the White House after the talks between Prime Minister and the President in the Oval Office and the Cabinet meeting room.
"Together, we will build an even stronger, diverse US-India partnership that will advance the aspirations of our people for a bright and prosperous future grounded in respect for human rights, and shared principles of democracy, freedom, and the rule of law," said the joint statement.
"Our cooperation will serve the global good as we work through a range of multilateral and regional groupings particularly the Quad to contribute toward a free, open, inclusive, and resilient Indo-Pacific. No corner of human enterprise is untouched by the partnership between our two great countries, which spans the seas to the stars," said the statement.
Upbeat about the relationship, Prime Minister Modi told reporters during a news conference that now even the sky is not the limit.
"In fact, in short for India and America partnership, even this -- even the sky is not the limit. Friends, the most important pillar of our relations is our people-to-people ties," he said.
"Two of the world's largest democracies, India and America can together make an important contribution to global peace stability and prosperity. I'm confident that based on these values, we will be able to fulfil the expectations and aspirations of not only the people of our two countries but of the entire world," he said.
Affirming that technology will play the defining role in deepening our partnership, the joint statement said the leaders hailed the inauguration of the initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) in January 2023 as a major milestone in US-India relations.
"They called on our governments, businesses, and academic institutions to realise their shared vision for the strategic technology partnership. The leaders recommitted the United States and India to fostering an open, accessible, and secure technology ecosystem, based on mutual confidence and trust that reinforces our shared values and democratic institutions," it said.
Observing that the US-India Major Defence Partnership has emerged as a pillar of global peace and security, the statement said that through joint exercises, strengthening of defence industrial cooperation, the annual "2+2" Ministerial Dialogue, and other consultative mechanisms, the two countries have made substantial progress in building an advanced and comprehensive defence partnership in which the militaries coordinate closely across all domains.
"The leaders appreciated the strong military-to-military ties, mutual logistics support, and efforts to streamline implementation of foundational agreements. They noted that information sharing and placement of Liaison Officers in each other's military organizations will spur joint service cooperation.
They also reiterated their resolve to strengthen maritime security cooperation, including through enhanced underwater domain awareness. The leaders welcomed the launch of dialogues in new defence domains including space and Artificial intelligence, which will enhance capacity building, knowledge, and expertise, said the joint statement.
As climate action and clean energy leaders, the United States and India share a common and ambitious vision to rapidly deploy clean energy at scale, build economic prosperity, and help achieve global climate goals.
"They recognise the critical role of the US Inflation Reduction Act and India's ambitious production-linked incentives scheme for cutting-edge clean and renewable technologies. The leaders highlighted the U.S.-India Climate and Clean Energy Agenda 2030 Partnership and Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP) as reflective of this commitment," said the joint statement.
As global partners, the United States and India affirmed that the rules-based international order must be respected.
They emphasised that the contemporary global order has been built on principles of the UN Charter, international law, and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, the joint statement said.
As two of the world's largest democratic economies, the United States and India are indispensable partners in advancing global prosperity and a free, fair, and rules-based economic order, the joint statement said.
Biden highlighted the impactful participation of Modi in the G7 Hiroshima Summit and looks forward to the G20 Summit in September in New Delhi.
He applauded India's leadership in its ongoing G20 Presidency, which has brought renewed focus on strengthening multilateral institutions and international cooperation to tackle global challenges such as climate change, pandemics, fragility and conflict, along with work to accelerate the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and lay the foundation for strong, sustainable, balanced, and inclusive growth, said the joint statement.
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