Biden commends India's leadership on world stage, PM Modi's commitment to strengthen Quad

Washington, Sep 22 (IANS) US President Joe Biden has expressed his "immense appreciation" for India's leadership on the world stage, particularly Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership in the G-20 and in the Global South and his commitment to strengthen the Quad to ensure a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific. 

President Biden also commended Prime Minister Modi for his historic visits to Poland and Ukraine, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in decades, and for his message of peace and ongoing humanitarian support for Ukraine, including its energy sector, and on the importance of international law, including the UN charter, the White House said on Saturday.

President Biden and Prime Minister Modi, during their meeting earlier in the day, affirmed that the US-India Comprehensive Global and Strategic Partnership, the defining partnership of the 21st century, is decisively delivering on an ambitious agenda that serves the global good.

Prime Minister Modi described the meeting with Biden as "extremely fruitful" and thanked the President for hosting him at the latter's residence in Greenville, Delaware. "We had the opportunity to discuss regional and global issues during the meeting," he said in a post on X after the meeting.

The leaders reflected on a "historic period" that has seen the US and India reach unprecedented levels of trust and collaboration. They affirmed that the US-India partnership "must be anchored in upholding democracy, freedom, the rule of law, human rights, pluralism, and equal opportunities for all as our countries strive to become more perfect unions and meet our shared destiny".

President Biden and Prime Minister Modi commended the progress that has made the US-India Major Defense Partnership a "pillar of global security and peace", highlighting the benefits of increased operational coordination, information-sharing, and defence industrial innovation, the White House said.

They expressed "unrelenting optimism" and the "utmost confidence" that the "tireless efforts of our peoples, our civic and private sectors, and our governments to forge deeper bonds have set the US-India partnership on a path toward even greater heights in the decades ahead".

India is at the forefront of efforts to seek solutions to the most pressing challenges, from supporting the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic to addressing the devastating consequences of conflicts around the world, it said.

The leaders reaffirmed their support for the freedom of navigation and the protection of commerce, including critical maritime routes in the Middle East where India will assume co-lead in 2025 of the Combined Task Force 150 to work with Combined Maritime Forces to secure sea lanes in the Arabian Sea.

President Biden shared with Prime Minister Modi that the US supports initiatives to reform global institutions to reflect India's important voice, including permanent membership for India in a reformed UN Security Council. The leaders voiced their view that a closer US-India partnership "is vital to the success of efforts to build a cleaner, inclusive, more secure, and more prosperous future for the planet".

President Biden and Prime Minister Modi applauded the success of the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) in deepening and expanding strategic cooperation across key technology sectors, including space, semiconductors, and advanced telecommunications. Both Leaders committed to enhance regular engagements to improve the momentum of collaboration in fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum, biotechnology, and clean energy.

They highlighted ongoing efforts to strengthen collaboration with like-minded partners, including through the Quad and a US-India-ROK Trilateral Technology initiative launched earlier this year to build more secure and resilient supply chains for critical industries and ensure we collectively remain at the leading edge of innovation. The ROK is the acronym of South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea.

--IANS

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