India, the United States completes reference clauses for negotiations to sign bilateral trade agreements
New Delhi: India and the United States have completed reference clauses for negotiations on a bilateral trade agreement, an important step towards realizing U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for a final trade deal, with U.S. Vice President JD Vance “officially announced” at the address of the India-American League on Tuesday.
Speaking at the International Centre in Rajasthan, the U.S. Vice President also urged India to “abandon non-propaganda barriers” and said it was discussed in a “very good” meeting with the Prime Minister of New Delhi on Monday night.
Vance refused to criticize the U.S. president for launching a trade war, saying Mr. Trump was just seeking to “rebalance” global trade, thinking that everyone shared the future, and the United States was looking for a trading partner that “balanced, open, stable, stable and fair.” He added that “rebalancing will bring great benefits to the people of both countries”. The comments were published after the U.S. imposed “reciprocal tariffs” on many countries, including India, on many countries, including India, and then quickly shut down it down within 90 days outside China.
Mr. Vance said calling India and the United States “friends”, saying that the 21st century will be marked by the relationship between the two countries, which may make it the largest century ever. If the bilateral bonds stagger, he firmly warns the global dark age. “If we don’t keep up, the consequences for the Indo-Pacific region will be terrible,” he said.
The U.S. vice president called India a “main defense partner” and he also urged India to buy more state-of-the-art military equipment from the U.S., which he said was the best in the world, noting that the U.S. F-35 (Stealth Aircraft) could help the Indian Air Force protect India’s skies and “Deter terre Offer Ogressors”, a comment on China.
The U.S. Vice President also mentioned bilateral defensive ties including javelin missiles and Strick infantry combat vehicles and plans for the two countries to jointly produce ammunition. He also marked the launch of a “coal coalition of joint autonomous systems” between the two countries, which he said would “develop the most advanced maritime system” and (India-Pacific) “regions must maintain hostile power to avoid seeking rule”.
Vance said the United States also wants to sell more energy (oil) to India, noting that big strides in advanced fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) are based on energy security. He also talked about how the ethanol of the best corn from American farmers can also enhance India’s energy security.
The U.S. Vice President also welcomed the Modi administration’s move to amend its nuclear liability law and said that existing laws are a barrier for U.S. companies to export small nuclear reactors and build larger nuclear reactors in India. He talked about sectors that benefited from bilateral relations, such as pharmaceuticals, submarine cables and other key commodities.
Mr Vance noted the advancement in U.S. hardware and India in launching corresponding advances in infrastructure.
Vance described the Modi government as the most popular government in a democratic world (after 11 years in power), calling the prime minister a “serious leader” and a “hard negotiator who pushed hard bargaining” to protect India’s interests.
“I don’t blame Mr. Modi, but I blame the American leaders who have failed to protect American workers in the past,” he said.
The U.S. Vice President also mentioned how the two countries work together as part of the four-nation mechanism and said that Quad Summit will be held this fall (in India, Mr. Trump is expected to attend).
Mr Vance said that stronger India-US relations will lead to greater stability in the Indo-Pacific region. He also criticized the previous U.S. government’s attitude towards India and other countries, which he said was “preaching” and added that Mr. Trump “failed to reject ideas” and hoped that the two countries would grow together.
“Our partners don’t have to have a friend in India like we do (the United States)” Vance said.
To put it easily, just as his Indian-wife Usha sat in the audience, the U.S. Vice President mentioned his three children liked “two leaders” around the world and said Mr. Trump and Mr. Modi were the two leaders. He also thanked the Prime Minister for his hospitality during his visit. The Vance family will visit Agra on Wednesday to visit the Taj Mahal.
