- Summary
- Companies
- U.S. expanding India ties to balance China’s rise
- Modi only third Indian leader invited for state visit
- Fighter jet engines, drones, semiconductors deals expected
NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON, June 19 (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi heads to the United States this week for a visit billed as a turning point for bilateral relations, with deeper cooperation in defence industry and sharing high technology in sharp focus.
The visit is expected to give India access to critical American technologies Washington rarely shares with non-allies, strengthening a new bond that is underpinned by not just global politics but also business and economics.
Washington and New Delhi, whose relationship was marked by mutual suspicion during the Cold War, have been moving closer for over two decades now with successive U.S. presidents displaying bipartisan support for stronger ties with the emerging Asian economy and regional power.
President Joe Biden has built on that legacy and expanded cooperation as the United States sees India as a vital partner in its efforts to push back against China's expanding influence worldwide and strengthen security in the Indo-Pacific.
Washington also wants to wean India away from its traditional defence partner Russia. New Delhi continues to do business with Moscow and has increased its purchases of cheap Russian oil in the aftermath of the invasion of Ukraine, much to the frustration of the West.
India too has overcome its "hesitations of history" - as Modi put it in a 2016 address to U.S. Congress - and looked West amid its own military tensions and fraying ties with China.
Though Modi has made sev...
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