Vance set to visit India for bilateral talks on economic, trade and geopolitical ties
NEW DELHI: US Vice President JD Vance will embark on a four-day visit to India on Monday as the two countries seek to unlock economic opportunities and negotiate a bilateral trade deal.
Vance will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi for talks on the economy, trade and geopolitical ties. Vance's visit is seen as an important diplomatic mission by President Donald Trump's administration, and it coincides with a rapidly intensifying trade war between Washington and Beijing, which is New Delhi's main rival in the region.
A trade deal between India and the US could significantly enhance economic ties between the two countries and potentially strengthen diplomatic ties.
The US is also India's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade valued at $190 billion until recently.
India's foreign ministry has said the visit will 'provide an opportunity for both sides to review the progress in bilateral relations' and two leaders will 'exchange views on regional and global developments of mutual interest.'
Here's what to know more about Vance's visit:
Bilateral trade agreement
Vance's arrival in India comes weeks after Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard was in India for a geopolitical conference and two months after Modi met Trump in Washington.
Modi was among the first leaders to visit the US and hold talks with Trump after he returned to the White House. During his visit, Modi hailed a 'mega partnership' with the US and kickstarted a negotiation process to minimize the possible fallout of Trump's tariffs after it had already cut tariffs on a range of US goods.
Regardless, Trump targeted India with a 26 percent levy as part of his now-paused tariff program, which has provided temporary relief for Indian exporters.
During his visit, Modi sought to soften impending trade barriers by saying he was open to reducing more tariffs on US goods, repatriating undocumented Indian nationals and buying military gear. The two countries also agreed to start talks toward clinching the bilateral trade agreement.
Modi on Friday said he spoke with Elon Musk and said he and the SpaceX CEO 'discussed the immense potential for collaboration in the areas of technology and innovation,' saying 'India remains committed to advancing our partnerships with the US in these domains.'
India's deep ties to US business
India is a close partner of the US for bilateral trade, foreign direct investments, defense cooperation, and an important strategic ally in combating the rising influence of China in the Indo-Pacific region.
It is also part of the Quad, which is made up of the United States plus India, Japan and Australia and seen as a counter-balance to China's expansion in the region.
Leading UScompanies such as Apple Inc. and Google have expanded operations in India in recent years. Last month, Musk's Starlink entered into agreements with two of India's top telecom operators to provide satellite-based Internet services.
To further boost trade ties, the US and India have set an ambitious target of more than doubling their bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030 under the expected trade deal agreement.
The negotiations are especially urgent for New Delhi as it could be hit hard by Trump's reciprocal tariffs, particularly in sectors of agriculture, processed food, auto components, high-end machinery, medical equipment and jewelry. This poses a significant challenge for Modi government as it hopes to spruce up the country's economy and generate jobs with an export-led recovery.
Modi and Trump already share rapport
Modi established a good working relationship with Trump during his first term in office. It now appears that the two leaders are likely to further boost cooperation between their countries, particularly in trade as Chinese President Xi Jinping is aiming to position Beijing as a reliable trade partner in the Asia-Pacific region amid rising tensions with Washington.
India has also already taken a number of steps to win over Trump. It will purchase more oil, energy and defense equipment, including the fifth-generation stealth fighter jets, from the US
The U.S, however, wants greater market access for its agricultural and dairy products in India, but New Delhi has been reluctant so far as the farm sector employs bulk of the country's workforce.
Family trip for Vance
Vance's visit to India marks his first official trip to the country, which has added significance for the second family. His wife Usha Vance — a practicing Hindu — is the daughter of immigrants from South India.
In his memoir 'Hillbilly Elegy,' Vance described his wife a 'supersmart daughter of Indian immigrants' whom he met at Yale Law School. Usha's parents moved to the US in the late 1970s.
Vance will be accompanied by Usha, their children and other senior members of the US administration, and the couple will visit Indian cities of Jaipur and Agra and participate in engagements at cultural sites, a readout from the White House said.
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Saudi Gazette
13 hours ago
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At least four of them have now come back home, with no answers still about why they were picked up.A third of Assam's 32 million residents are Muslims and many of them are descendants of immigrants who settled there during British Khatun, a 67-year-old from Assam's Barpeta who is still in Bangladesh, says she has temporarily been given shelter by a local family."I have no-one here," she laments. Her family has managed to speak to her but don't know if and when she can return. She lost her case in the foreigners' tribunal and in the state's high court and hadn't appealed in the Supreme after the recent round of action began, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma cited a February Supreme Court direction which ordered the government to start deportation proceedings for people who had been "declared foreigners" but were still held in detention centres."The people who are declared foreigners but haven't even appealed in court, we are pushing them back," Sarma said. He also claimed that people with pending court appeals were not being "troubled".But Abdur Razzaque Bhuyan, a lawyer working on many citizenship cases in Assam, alleged that in many of the recent instances, due process — which would, among other things, require India and Bangladesh to cooperate on the action — was not followed."What is happening is a wilful and deliberate misinterpretation of the court order," he recently filed a petition on behalf of a student organization seeking the Supreme Court's intervention in stopping what they said was a "forceful and illegal pushback policy" but was asked to first approach the Assam high Morigaon, around 167km from Barpeta, Rita Khatun sat near a table which had a pile of papers on husband Khairul Islam, a 51-year-old school teacher, was in the same group as Ms Banu that was allegedly picked up by authorities.A tribunal had declared him a foreigner in 2016, after which he spent two years in a detention center before being released. Like Ms Banu, his case is also being heard in the Supreme Court."Every document is proof that my husband is Indian," Ms Khatun said, leafing through what she said was Mr Islam's high school graduation certificate and some land records. "But that wasn't enough to prove his nationality to authorities."She says her husband, his father and grandfather were all born in on 23 May, she says that policemen arrived at their home and took Mr Islam away without any was only a few days later — when a viral video surfaced of a Bangladeshi journalist interviewing Mr Islam in no man's land — that the family learnt where he Ms Banu, Mr Islam has now been sent back to his family confirmed his return, the police told the BBC they had "no information" about his Begum says she is sure her father was declared a foreigner due to a case of mistaken identity — he was also taken on the same night as Mr Islam."My father's name is Abdul Latif, my grandfather was Abdul Subhan. The notice that came [years ago, from the foreigners' tribunal] said Abdul Latif, son of Shukur Ali. That's not my grandfather, I don't even know him," Ms Begum said, adding that she had all the necessary documents to prove her father's family has now heard that Mr Latif is back in Assam, but he hasn't reached home some of these people are back home now, they fear they might be picked up again abruptly."We are not playthings," Ms Begum said."These are human beings, you can't toss them around as per your whims." — BBC
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