India, US Finalise Terms of Reference for Negotiations to Ink a Bilateral Trade Pact
The US vice-president urged India to “drop non-tariff barriers” and said the matter had been discussed during the “very good” talks with the Prime Minister in New Delhi on Monday evening.
New Delhi: India and the United States have finalised the terms of reference for negotiations to ink a bilateral trade pact and this is a vital step to realise the vision of both US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi towards a final trade deal, US vice-president J.D. Vance “officially announced” on Tuesday in Jaipur at an address on India-US ties.
Speaking at the Rajasthan International Centre, the US vice-president also urged India to “drop non-tariff barriers” and said the matter had been discussed during the “very good” talks with the Prime Minister in New Delhi on Monday evening.
Rejecting criticism that the US President had started a trade war, Mr Vance said Mr Trump is only seeking to “rebalance” global trade for a shared future for all and that the US is looking for “balanced, open, stable and fair” trade partners. He added that “rebalancing would produce great benefits” for the people of both nations. The comments come in the wake of the US imposing “reciprocal tariffs” on a number of nations, including India, earlier this month and then quickly rolling it back substantially for a 90-day period with the exception of China.
Terming India and the US as “friends”, Mr Vance said the 21st century will be marked by the relationship between the two countries, which could make it the greatest-ever century. He tough warned of a dark time globally if the bilateral ties faltered. “If we fail to keep pace, consequences for the Indo-Pacific region will be dire,” he said.
Terming India as a “major defence partner”, the US vice-president also urged India to buy more state of the art military equipment from the United States that he said was the best globally, pointing out that US F-35 (stealth aircraft) can help the Indian Air Force to protect Indian skies and “deter foreign aggressors”, a comment seen as a veiled reference to China.
The US vice-president also mentioned the close bilateral defence ties including the Javelin missiles and the Stryker infantry combat vehicles and plans for co-production of munitions by the two nations. He also flagged the launch of the “Joint Autonomous Systems Alliance” between both nations which he said will “develop state of the art maritime systems” and that the (Indo-Pacific) “region must remain safe from hostile powers that seek to dominate”.
The US also wants to sell more energy (oil) to India, Mr Vance said, pointing out that strides in advanced fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) are based on energy security. He also spoke about how ethanol from the finest corn produced by American farmers could also boost energy security for India.
The US vice-president also welcomed the Modi Government’s move to amend the nuclear liabilities law and said the existing law had been a barrier to US companies exporting small nuclear reactors and building larger ones in India. He spoke about the bilateral ties benefitting sectors such as pharma, under-sea cables and other critical goods.
Mr Vance pointed to the American advancements in AI hardware and India’s corresponding advancements in its start-up infrastructure.
Describing the Modi government as arguably the most popular in the democratic world (after 11 years of being in power continuously), Mr Vance hailed the PM as a “serious leader” and a “tough negotiator who drives a hard bargain” to protect India's interests.
“I don't blame Mr Modi, but I blame American leaders in the past who failed to protect American workers,” he said, also remarking in jest that he is “jealous” of Mr Modi’s domestic approval ratings.
The US vice-president also mentioned how the two nations are working together as part of the four-nation Quad mechanism and indicated that the Quad Summit will be held in autumn this year (in India, which Mr Trump is expected to attend).
Mr. Vance said a stronger India-US relationship will lead to greater stability in the Indo-Pacific. He also slammed the attitude of previous US governments towards India and other countries, which he said was “preachy”, adding that Mr Trump “rejects failed ideas” and wants both nations to grow together.
“Our partners need not look exactly like us (America). America has a friend in India,” Mr Vance said but added that there have to be certain shared objectives for both sides.
On a lighter note, as his Indian-origin wife Usha was seated in the audience, the US vice-president mentioned “two leaders” globally liked by his three children and said Mr Trump and Mr Modi are these two leaders. He also thanked the Prime Minister for the hospitality during the visit. The Vance family will visit Agra to see the Taj Mahal on Wednesday.
