Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s whirlwind state visit to the US wrapped up over the weekend.
The two leaders struck some big deals during three days of official business:
- ✈️ US-based General Electric will partner with India-based Hindustan Aeronautics to build jet engines and drones in India
- 💻 US-based Micron Technology will build a $2.75B semiconductor assembly facility with nearly $2B in Indian subsidies, and
- 🤖 A “Hi-Tech Handshake” aims to bolster tech firm cooperation, in a deal that leading India expert Irfan Nooruddin told Intrigue “elevates technology as a core pillar of the partnership.”
The two leaders also unleashed their inner Wordsworth:
- 🌅 Modi told a joint session of US Congress that the “partnership is like the sun in the new dawn that spreads light all around”, and
- 😍 President Biden called the US-India relationship “among the most consequential in the world that is stronger, closer and more dynamic in any time in history”.
Intrigue’s take: The two leaders also issued a massive (6,500 word) joint statement. And trust us when we tell you that the only thing tougher than reading these kinds of lengthy statements is actually negotiating them.
So it was interesting to see that the US agreed for the statement to include some pretty helpful language on India’s immediate concern (Pakistan). But India didn’t return the favour: there’s zero mention of China or Russia.
That kind of outcome suggests India has a bit of leverage with the US.
Also worth noting:
- Modi is the most popular leader in the world, and is one of only a few to have addressed more than one joint session of Congress (others include Winston Churchill and Nelson Mandela).
- Several members of Congress boycotted Modi’s address on human rights grounds.
- Indian purchases of Russian oil reached a record 1.95 million barrels per day in May.
