Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India and US share the same vision for the Indo-Pacific and are working to safeguard shared values and common interests not only bilaterally but also with other like-minded countries.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday met US President Joe Biden and said that the India-US relationship is truly a "partnership of trust" and the friendship will continue to be a "force for good" for global peace and stability. Biden called the relationship with India "among the closest we have on earth".
Meeting on the sideline of the Quad Leaders Summit, Modi and Biden vowed to work together for a more prosperous, free and secure world while committing to deepen India-US defence and economic engagements.
The discussions covered defence and security cooperation, technology partnerships, healthcare, the cyber domain, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the worldwide inflation, among other subjects.
The two leaders launched the India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) to facilitate outcome-oriented cooperation.
“Co-led by the National Security Council Secretariat in India and the US National Security Council, iCET would forge closer linkages between government, academia and industry of the two countries in areas such as AI, quantum computing, 5G/6G, biotech, space and semiconductors,” said Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
A White House readout said Biden condemned Russia's "unjustifiable war" against Ukraine and that the leaders discussed how to cooperate to manage disruptions caused by the war, especially the rise in energy and food prices to protect their respective citizens and the world.
Biden said he was pleased that the two countries have reached an agreement for the US Development Finance Corporation to continue this important work in India, supporting vaccine production, clean energy initiatives.
“I am glad that we are renewing the Indo-US Vaccine Action Programme,” he said. “There is so much that our countries can and will do together. I am committed to make the US-India partnership among the closest we have on earth," Biden said.
"With conclusion of India-US investment incentive agreement, we will see concrete progress in bilateral investment, we are also increasing bilateral cooperation in domain of technology; we cooperate closely even on global issues" PM Modi tells Biden.
The White House said the two leaders committed to deepening the "major defence partnership", encouraging economic engagement that benefits both countries, and expanding the partnership on global health, pandemic preparedness, and critical and emerging technologies.
It said they looked forward to enhancing partnership to accelerate India's just energy transition, including through the US-India Climate and Clean Energy Agenda 2030 Partnership, especially in the areas of renewables deployment, decarbonising the energy and industrial sectors, zero-emissions vehicles and mobilising related investment in India.
"President Biden condemned Russia’s unjustifiable war against Ukraine. The leaders committed to continue providing humanitarian assistance, and discussed how to cooperate to manage disruptions caused by the war in Ukraine, in particular the rise in energy and food prices, to protect their respective citizens and the world," said the White House.
The two leaders also exchanged views on issues concerning South Asia as well as the Indo-Pacific region, said MEA in its readout.
The MEA said, “The Leaders exchanged views on regional issues of mutual interest including South Asia and in the Indo-Pacific region, reaffirming their shared vision for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region”
The readout added that Modi welcomed the launch of Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) on Monday.
Modi stated that India is ready to work closely with all partner countries to shape a flexible, and inclusive IPEF taking into consideration the respective national circumstances, said MEA.
The two countries are renewing the Indo-US Vaccine Action Program, which since its establishment has yielded several "success stories" towards the discovery, development, and manufacture of India's first indigenous and low-cost vaccines to address rotavirus and COVID-19, said the White House.
The two countries announced India's joining the Combined Military Forces-Bahrain as an associate member.
The US readout said, "The leaders welcomed the launch of a United States–India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET), spearheaded by the National Security Councils of the two countries to expand partnership in critical and emerging technologies.”
It said the US plans to join six of India's Technology Innovation Hubs to support at least 25 joint research projects in 2022 in areas such as artificial intelligence and data science to advance progress in applications such as agriculture, health and climate.
"Recognising the fundamental role maritime domain awareness plays in preserving economic security and in responding to humanitarian crises, the leaders noted with pleasure the establishment of the Indo-Pacific partnership for maritime domain awareness," it said.
Modi described the meeting as productive in a tweet.
In his televised remarks, Modi noted the two countries have shared values and common interests in many areas, including security, and they have strengthened the bonds of trust.
He said, "I am sure that the India-USA Investment Incentive Agreement between us will see concrete progress in the direction of investment. We are increasing our bilateral cooperation in the field of technology, and also strengthening mutual coordination on global issues."
Modi said both the US and India share the same vision about the Indo-Pacific region and are working to safeguard the shared values and common interests not only at the bilateral level but also with other like-minded countries.
He said, "Quad and IPEF announced yesterday are active examples of this. Today our discussion will give more momentum to this positive momentum.
"I am confident that the friendship of India and America will continue to be a force for good for global peace and stability, for the sustainability of the planet, and for the well-being of mankind.”
Both leaders shared their views on a wide range of issues and discussed ways to deepen the India-USA friendship, the Prime Minister’s Office said.
In line with Washington's long-term vision for the region, Biden on Monday launched the ambitious IPEF, which is an initiative aimed at deeper cooperation among like-minded countries in areas like clean energy, supply-chain resilience and digital trade.
The MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said Modi and Biden noted with satisfaction the frequency of bilateral dialogues and engagements across levels.
This is the second meeting between Modi and Biden the latest high-profile India-US engagement. The two leaders had last month held a meeting prior to the 2+2 dialogue between the India-US defence and foreign ministers.
The MEA noted, “The meeting marks a continuation of the regular high-level dialogue between the two Leaders who met in-person in September 2021 in Washington DC and interacted at the G20 and COP26 Summits thereafter. Most recently they had a virtual interaction on 11 April 2022.”
(With PTI inputs)