Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to Washington on Thursday will lead to large defense contracts in particular, to the delight of Americans, anxious to heal their relationship with India.
In the morning, Mr. Modi was welcomed by US President Joe Biden with military honors, before an interview in the Oval Office.
The two leaders, who will issue a joint statement, will then address the press and answer their questions, a rare event for the Hindu nationalist head of government.
Narendra Modi must then address Congress, before an elegant gala dinner on the lawns of the White House, around a menu which, in his honor, will be vegetarian and inspired by Indian cuisine.
Social events aside, the strongest announcement on Thursday will concern the future manufacture in India of F-414 engines for fighter jets by the conglomerate General Electric, said a senior American official in an interview with reporters.
“Pioneer”
This same source, who requested anonymity, considered that it was a “pioneering initiative”, synonymous with significant transfers of American technology.
The same senior official also indicated that India was “committed to acquiring American combat drones” and added, without giving details: “We are absolutely delighted. »
Joe Biden can indeed only be delighted to see India diversifying its defense equipment, which is historically very dependent on Russia in this area.
Narendra Modi will be able to tell him that he is strengthening the Indian industrial fabric thanks to the announcement of General Electric, but also thanks to the initiative of another large American company, this time in the field of semiconductors.
The American group Micron, heavyweight in the manufacture of these essential computer components, will indeed, according to another senior American official, announce an investment of more than 800 million dollars in a factory in India.
The senior official said that it was for the United States and India to build a “semiconductor ecosystem that allows for the diversification of supply chains”, which the COVID-19 pandemic has shown to how fragile they could be.
Joe Biden and Narendra Modi, on their first state visit to the United States, will also, according to senior White House officials, announce joint initiatives in space exploration and strategic metals, as well as as maritime partnerships and the opening of consulates.
Democracy
The reception with great fanfare awaiting the Indian Prime Minister illustrates the desire of the United States to deepen the partnership with the most populous country in the world.
Joe Biden wants to believe that China’s ambitions, which worry New Delhi and which Washington is determined to counter, will convince India to counterbalance by turning more to America. And this even if this historically non-aligned country will probably never become a pure and hard ally, in the same way for example as the Western member countries of NATO.
To strengthen the bilateral relationship, the 80-year-old Democrat, who has promised to articulate his foreign policy around the defense of democracy, should avoid tackling the issue of human rights and freedoms too directly with the Indian Prime Minister.
Narendra Modi is accused by a number of associations of fueling the persecutions against the Muslim minority in Kashmir, and of putting pressure both on the press and on the political opposition.
The US president “approaches these debates and these subjects (around democracy) with a certain amount of humility”, said a senior White House official, arguing that the United States had its “own problems” in matter.
Joe Biden “seeks to have a dialogue based on our common challenges […] rather than lecturing or berating,” he said.