When Obama signs the NDAA 2017 into law this week, the US-India partnership will be enshrined in US legislation, binding every succeeding administration, whatever its inclinations, to treat India as a 'major defence partner,' says Ajai Shukla.
During the virtual meet, Biden and Modi will discuss cooperation on a range of issues, including ending the COVID-19 pandemic, countering the climate crisis, strengthening the global economy, and upholding a free, open, rules-based international order to bolster security, democracy, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said.
A continuation of the highest standard by the FAA will be a relief for Indian airlines especially the Tata group which intends to increase Air India flights on India-US routes. US aviation watchdog Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has completed the audit of India's aviation regulator DGCA. Sources said that the FAA team was satisfied with the work and changes in regulations by India and is likely to maintain a Category 1 status rating under its International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme.
'A lot of people,' says India's Ambassador to the US, 'are struggling how to define this relationship.' Aziz Haniffa/Rediff.com reports from Washington, DC.
Here's the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to a joint session of the United States Congress, delivered on Thursday.
Members of his team and industry were right now in India, US Defence Secretary Ash Carter disclosed, 'looking at the potential co-production of fighter aircraft.'
India said the US secretary of state Colin Powell should have shared the decision with India about Pakistan being accorded a major non-NATO ally status.
The bilateral and Quad summits, in which Prime Minister Modi played a significant role, has sent the right message to China, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
United States President Barack Obama has nominated Nisha Desai Biswal as the new assistant secretary of state for south and central Asian affairs.
Narendra Modi's positive engagement with Barack Obama has well and truly washed away the doubts and slights of the past.
The United States administration's approach to India -- including its 'slow' response to the request for questioning terror suspect David Headley and its proximity to Pakistan in the war on terror -- are steadily driving a wedge in the strong relations cultivated during the regime of former President George W Bush, noted historian Arthur Herman has observed.
The dent on India-US relations caused by L'affaire Devyani will not remain for long as those will be determined by strategic and economic considerations, says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
India and the United States on Monday signed a memorandum of agreement on modernisation of aviation infrastructure in India and American certification to Indian aviation products such as aircraft parts.
'Good to meet US Secretary of State @SecBlinken today. I welcome President Biden's strong commitment to strengthen the India-US Strategic Partnership, which is anchored in our shared democratic values and is a force for global good,' Modi tweeted.
Balachandran said that he would encourage Kamala Harris like any other parent and advice her to continue the good work.
Insisting that it had shared with India terror-related inputs it deemed were 'potentially credible' to its national security, the United States on Saturday said it was looking into media reports that Federal Bureau of Investigation had prior knowledge of David Coleman Headley's links with terror groups in Pakistan.
"The recent election in Pakistan, as well as the normalising of US-Pakistan relations, are necessary but not sufficient conditions for the regularising of India-Pakistan relations," noted American scholar Stephen P Cohen has said.
New Delhi has always maintained that its IPR regime is fully compliant with all international laws.
United States President Joe Biden and First Lady Dr Jill Biden on Monday hosted a Diwali reception at the White House in what they called the largest since the People's House started celebrating the festival during the George Bush administration.
'One thing I've learned about nuclear power is that these are not fast kind of time-lines.'
Dubbed as "Jobs Governor", Haley turned South Carolina's economy around during her tenure as governor and transforming the state into a manufacturing powerhouse. She cut taxes, repealed burdensome regulations, and turned South Carolina into "the Beast of the Southeast". Under her leadership, figures note, the state's unemployment rate hit a 15-year low, and when she left office, South Carolina was at full employment.
'There is no need for suspicion regarding the US-India civil nuclear agreement,' US Ambassador David C Mulford tells the Rediff Chat.
'President-elect Biden, in particular, has deep knowledge of, and experience with, dealing with India, serving as a custodian and champion of the relationship long before it was fashionable to do so.'
Expressing concern over India's huge import bills on energy, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday said the situation regarding the international energy supplies figured promptly during his discussions with the US defence secretary Donald Rumsf
Kerry, a member of the US Senate's Foreign Relations Committee, said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had told him during their meeting on Thursday that India would sign the Fissile Material Control Treaty.
'You cannot bring down a nation by killing a few people. Certainly not in a country like India,' says National Security Adviser M K Narayanan.
'What is the ISI doing and why can't they understand for their own interest that bringing stability to the region will help all the countries become prosperous, whereas a continuation of incitement will only lead to misery for all.'
Analysts suggest that with the Indo-US nuclear deal in limbo, New Delhi could be balancing foreign policy with an eye to the polls. They say that India's sharp response to the US State Department's 'advice' on Iran was one such move. While some felt the response was a case of dangerous over-reaction, others said it was merely an act of diplomacy where relations with other countries, particularly the US, are balanced to suit India's interests.
'We can fight our own battles. Let me make it clear that we are not asking America to help us.' National Security Adviser M K Narayanan in an exclusive interview.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will arrive in New York on Sunday to participate in the high-level 77th session of the UN General Assembly, which kicks off on September 20 with the opening of the general debate.
Senior officials of India and the US will meet after the forthcoming Budget session to identify and prioritise sectors for investments and technology sharing.
Iran's growing proximity to China may have also played a part.
Officials of the two countries deliberated on terror threat assessments, particularly in the backdrop of reports that Taliban is regrouping and preparing to launch a major action soon.
An agreement to standardise various security procedures between India and the United States was signed on Thursday, which will, among other things, lay down parameters for deployment of sky marshals in flights between the two countries.
Foreign policy expert Dr Ashley J Tellis believes there are three fundamental objectives that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to the United States can accomplish.
President A P J Abdul Kalam and US President George Bush have already ratified the treaty.
'We appreciate his positive evaluation of the relationship and share his optimism about its future directions.' 'We look forward to welcoming him in India next week for detailed discussions on further strengthening of our partnership,' the MEA said on Friday.
Whatever be Kamala Harris's preference for her identity, many Indians in the US will rally around her as she is the first person with Indian blood in her veins to get close to the White House, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
