Trade, Defence, Energy on Modi, Vance Agenda

New Delhi: Hours after landing in New Delhi on Monday morning along with his Indian-origin wife Usha and their three children, US vice-president J.D. Vance held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the evening at his official residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, during which the two leaders “reviewed and positively assessed the progress in various areas of bilateral cooperation and welcomed the significant progress in the negotiations for a mutually beneficial India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement focused on the welfare of the people of the two countries”. The pact is likely to be finalised by autumn this year.

A statement by the Prime Minister’s Office late Monday evening also said the two leaders “noted continued efforts towards enhancing cooperation in energy, defence, strategic technologies and other areas” that form part of the Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership between the US and India. It added they “exchanged views on various regional and global issues of mutual interest, and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward”. The meeting was also attended by external affairs minister S. Jaishankar and national security adviser Ajit Doval from the Indian side and “senior members of the US administration”.

The PMO statement said that through vice-president Vance, Mr Modi “conveyed his warm greetings to US President Donald Trump and said that he looked forward to President Trump’s visit to India later this year” (for the Quad Summit). It said that during the meeting, Mr Modi also “fondly recalled his visit to Washington DC” in February this year and his “fruitful discussions” with President Trump then “which laid down the roadmap for close cooperation between India and the US, leveraging the strengths of Make America Great Again (MAGA) and Viksit Bharat (Developed India) 2047”. It may be noted that with an eye on China in the region, the two nations also have robust defence ties. Another important aspect of their relationship is the initiative for Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) that was launched a few years ago wherein significant strides have been made towards deepening and expanding strategic cooperation across key technology sectors including space, semiconductors, advanced telecommunications, artificial intelligence, quantum, biotechnology, and clean energy.

The schedule at Mr Modi’s residence Monday evening seemed to have three components, of which the second was the formal meeting while the third was a dinner hosted by Mr Modi for the Vance family and the accompanying American delegation. The first was an informal chat, with Mr Modi warmly chatting with Mr Vance and his wife Usha in the company of the couple’s three small children — sons Ewan and Vivek and daughter Mirabel. Mr Modi initially received the Vance family warmly at his residence on their arrival. Footage later showed all of them seated in a living room, with Mr Modi interacting affectionately with the three small children as the Vance couple looked on, expressing delight. Mr Modi also gave the children a peacock feather each. The peacock is India’s national bird. The children were fascinated and footage also showed Mirabel swatting her smiling father on the face with the feather. The children were dressed in formal and traditional Indian attire.

During the formal talks later, the US second lady and the three children reportedly attended a puppet show. The PMO said Mr Modi “extended his best wishes to the vice-president, second lady and their children for a pleasant and productive stay in India”. The US vice-president and his family began their four-day visit to India that will also see them going to Jaipur and later Agra. Mr Vance and his family had earlier met Mr Modi in Paris in February on the sidelines of the Artificial Intelligence summit then hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron.

This is the first top-level visit from the US side since the Trump administration announced reciprocal tariffs on many countries, including India, and then substantially rolled it back for 90 days just earlier this month, with the sole exception of China. This is also be the first visit from the US side ever since terrorist and Pakistan-born Canadian citizen Tahawwur Rana was extradited from the US to India last week to face justice in the Indian courts for his role in the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai terror attacks of November 2008.

The MEA said, meanwhile that it was aware “several” Indian students in the US have received communications from the authorities there on the status of their F1 (student) visas. The US is reportedly looking to terminate the visas of more foreign students, including Indians, amid a crackdown that began last month to deport foreign students who have allegedly taken part in pro-Palestinian protests in university campuses or who have taken an anti-Israeli stand on their social media platforms.

On Monday morning, on his arrival, the US vice-president and his family were welcomed by railway and I&B minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. The children were all dressed in Indian attire as the Vance family was regaled with a Bharatanatyam performance, which they appreciated. Later, the Vance family visited the sprawling and magnificent Akshardham Temple near the banks of the Yamuna. “Thank you all so much for your hospitality and kindness in welcoming me and my family to this beautiful place. It is a great credit to India that you built a beautiful temple with precision and care. Our kids, in particular, loved it. God bless,” Mr Vance was quoted as writing in the temple guest book. “They were given a traditional welcome after which they had ‘darshan’. A carved wooden elephant, a model of the Delhi Akshardham Temple and children’s books were gifted to the family,” a priest at the temple told PTI, which also cited temple volunteer Meera Sondagar as saying that vice-president Vance was especially captivated by the intricately-sculpted Gajendra Peeth, a plinth adorned with carvings of elephants that symbolises strength and wisdom. “He was shown the entire Akshardham complex and was deeply moved by the experience. He said he felt a sense of peace here,” Ms Sondagar was quoted as saying.

The Vance Family then visited the Central Cottage Industries Emporium on Janpath, where they purchased some traditional Indian handicrafts. “It was a wonderful visit and he (Vance) enjoyed it a lot. We were quite enthusiastic. He also purchased some items from our showroom,” CCIE general manager Meera Somani was quoted as saying by PTI. It also reported that the emporium staff said the Vance family bought wooden items, handloom products and brassware. “They were very happy to see Indian handicrafts and handloom products under one roof”, Anil Rajak, a staffer, was also quoted as saying.

On Tuesday, Mr Vance and his family will visit Jaipur, where the vice-president will deliver an address on India-US ties and the Trump administration’s policies. They are also likely to visit the Amber Fort there. On Wednesday, they will go to Agra and visit the Taj Mahal, before heading back to the US Thursday.