Deepak Dwivedi
THE six-day visit of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to the US was not only the last highlevel contact between India and the Joe Biden administration, but also the first visit to the US by a senior Indian official since Donald Trump’s election victory. Amid the announcements of sweeping policy changes during the first week of President Donald Trump’s second term, this was his second within the span of a month and signalled continuity in IndiaUS relations. Jaishankar met with senior members of the outgoing Biden administration in late December in Washington, while outgoing National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan visited India in January. Jaishankar’s trips to Washington reflect India’s recognition of the importance of its relationship with the US and the necessity of managing it prudently amid global turbulence.
More recently, after attending the Trump’s inauguration, Jaishankar held bilateral talks with NSA Michael Waltz and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the sidelines of the Quad Foreign Ministers’ meeting. All this points towards a resilient engagement. Describing the special treatment extended to him during his visit as India’s representative, Dr Jaishankar said, “It is very clear that the Trump administration is prioritising the bilateral relationship with India.” On day-one of the Trump he participated in the Quad foreign ministers’ and held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the US, Japan and Australia. Later, he also interacted with several top Trump administration officials that included the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and nominee for the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Kash Patel.
As for strategic and security issues are concerned, the deepening of the IndiaUS partnership was indicated by the talks between President Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Jaishankar’s visit. After a warm and friendly 20-minute phone conversation, the groundwork for an early summit between the two leaders seems to be in motion. Both leaders expressed a strong commitment to strengthening India-US bilateral relations and addressing key global issues. Both are on the same page that the era of wars is over and volent resolution of UkraineRussia and Israel-Hamas conflicts should stop in favour of a negotiated settlement.
Speculations suggest that PM Modi and President Trump could meet in Washington, potentially coinciding with the Artificial Intelligence Summit scheduled in France from February 10-12. The possibility of a face-to-face interaction underscores the growing alignment between the two nations. The India-US relationship is set to deepen further, with both leaders touching upon key areas such as trade and defence cooperation. President Trump highlighted the importance of fair trade and India’s purchase of Americanmade security equipment valued at $4 billion.
The elephant in the room is the H-1B visa issue, within the larger and ongoing debate over immigration in the US. Trump has expressed the need for “competent people” in the US, in an attempt, perhaps, to assuage concerns raised by his executive order on birthright citizenship. In recent remarks, he expressed confidence in PM Modi’s ability to address related issues effectively. The refreshed ModiTrump understanding signals a promising start for US-India relations in Trump’s second presidential term. With the prospect of a meeting at the AI Summit or another early summit, the stage is set for further solidifying ties between the two global powers.
