Tuesday’s visit to the US by Prime Minister Narendra Modi includes a meeting with US President Joe Biden where they will discuss ways to further their mutual cooperation in the areas of trade, investment, and technology alliances.

Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra gave a press briefing on the PM’s visit and mentioned that one of the major aspects that will be strongly highlighted is bilateral defence cooperation. “A robust trade and investment alliance has been the second essential element. The third element is technology, which connects with a variety of other fields, including manufacturing, investing, communication, and space, according to Kwatra.

Milestone Visit

As part of the International Day of Yoga celebrations at the United Nations headquarters, Modi will teach yoga sessions there on June 21. He will also meet with important figures there. The PM has official high-level engagements in Washington the next day, which will begin with a welcoming ceremony at the White House and a meeting with President Joe Biden. Additionally, he will address the US Congress. The same evening, Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will throw a State banquet in Modi’s honour. One-on-one conversations with specific CEOs have been scheduled on June 23. After that, US Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken will serve as hosts for PM.

The visit was referred to as a “milestone” in the Indo-US relationship by the Foreign Secretary.

Defence deals

Another official noted that the two presidents “are likely to reinforce the target of increasing bilateral trade to $500 billion while accelerating crucial defence deals.”

According to the official, two significant defence deals are likely to be signed, including one for the $3 billion purchase of 31 predator drones (SeaGuardian for the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force) and another for the joint production of GE engines that will power Tejas Mk-II fighter jets.

As NSA Jake Sullivan revealed to the media during his recently finished trip to Delhi to formalise the structure of bilateral negotiations in Washington, the US will also reduce regulatory limitations that have been impeding prospects for technology transfer and co-development.

One of the main consequences of the visit was anticipated to be a road map for defence industrial cooperation, according to Kwatra.

The majority of its attention is given to co-production and co-development in the defence industry. It also discusses how the two nations’ defence industrial ecosystems may work together more effectively and how supply chains for the sector could interface with one another more effectively, according to him.