US, India leaders salute ‘defining relationship’

WASHINGTON—US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Thursday that the two democracies’ partnership would define the next century, as Washington eyes a counterweight to China and brushes off allegations of growing authoritarianism in New Delhi.

The two nations reached major deals on engines for fighter jets, semiconductor investment and space cooperation as Biden rolled out the red carpet to Modi for only the third state visit of his presidency.

With thousands of Indian-Americans chanting his name on the White House’s South Lawn, Modi, sporting a flowing white kurta with a sky-blue jacket, walked a red carpet to a gun salute.

“I have long believed that the rela- tionship between the US and India will be one of the most defining relationships of the 21st century,” Biden said. Modi, India’s most powerful prime minister in decades, said that the visit brought a “new direction and new energy” to the partnership with the United States.

Later, addressing both chambers of Congress, Modi clearly alluded to US concerns on China as he backed a “free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific,” a fa- vorite phrase of the United States.

“The dark clouds of coercion and confrontation are casting their shadow in the Indo-Pacific,” Modi said.

Defending record on rights

Indian-American supporters broke protocol to chant Modi’s name during the speech but at least six lawmakers from Biden’s Democratic Party boycotted the talk, pointing to Modi’s human rights record.

Biden addressed the concerns lightly, calling religious pluralism a “core principle” for both India and the United States and saying that democratic values “face challenges around the world and in each of our countries.”

“The whole world has a stake in our success,” Biden said. “Maintaining our democracies makes us appealing partners.” AFP