At his end-of-the-year press briefing, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday affirmed that America deepened its partnership with India this year and elevated cooperation through the Quad along with Japan and Australia. Notably, this year saw a historic visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US to meet President Joe Biden.
"We’ve deepened our partnership with India. We’ve elevated cooperation through the Quad with India, Japan, and Australia," Blinken said in his remarks at a press availability in Washington, adding that the US partnerships with allies in the Indo-Pacific region have never been stronger and will continue to engage with China from a position of strength.
"The United States is more closely aligned, more closely aligned than ever, with the G7, with the EU, with other allies and partners on the challenges presented by Beijing. And we’re working together to address them. These efforts have allowed us to engage more effectively when tackling areas of concern, like China’s coercive trade and economic practices, peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the East and South China Seas, and human rights," he further said.
US efforts to normalise ties with China
He also noted that US efforts to normalise relations and restore high-level diplomacy, including with his and other officials' visit to Beijing have allowed Washington to take practical steps to reduce the risk of competition leading to conflict and make progress on a number of issues.
“That was on full display when President Biden met with President Xi (Jinping) last month and made tangible progress on issues that matter, that matter to Americans as well as to people around the world,” he said. The two leaders had met for a Summit in Woodside, California last month during the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting, their first meeting in about a year.
He also spoke on the ongoing Israel-Hamas War, saying that they will continue to help Israel to ensure that the October 7 attack is not repeated and the remaining hostages are brought back safely. "We continue to believe that Israel does not have to choose between removing the threat of Hamas and minimizing the toll on civilians in Gaza. It has an obligation to do both and it has a strategic interest to do both," he added.
India's relations with the US
India's relations with the United States have seen a remarkable uptick that came with PM Modi's first state visit to Washington in June this year, where he addressed a Joint Meeting of US Congress and interacted with business and thought leaders. He also participated in the G7 and Quad Leaders' Summit in Hiroshima, Japan in May and held a telephonic conversation with Biden in February.
Biden visited New Delhi to attend the G20 Leaders' Summit, where he held a bilateral meeting with PM Modi and co-hosted a group of G20 leaders to accelerate investments in high-quality infrastructure projects and development of economic corridors through the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Connectivity Corridor.
India and the US have improved their partnership in other sectors like space, trade and climate. In August, India and the US launched the Renewable Energy Technology Action Platform (RETAP) to enable lab-to-lab collaboration, pilot projects, testing of innovative technologies and
capacity development.
Additionally, The India-U.S. Working Group on Education and Skill Development (WGESD) was launched in May 2023 to focus on skilling and vocational education, certification and recognition, matchmaking between higher educational institutions and engaging with the private sector.
(with inputs from PTI)
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