India and the US on Tuesday unveiled a major initiative to boost hi-tech cooperation in seven areas, from artificial intelligence to semiconductors and defence, with a focus on removing barriers and export controls standing in the way of enhanced cooperation.
The move, announced by National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval and visiting US counterpart Jake Sullivan, is part of the Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) initiative launched in January, which envisions closer collaboration between private industry, researchers and academia municipalities. both sides. It is also part of efforts to focus on the outcome of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the US next week.
Sullivan also met Prime Minister Modi and briefed him on progress in various areas of cooperation. He said US President Joe Biden was looking forward to welcoming Modi on his state visit.
Modi expressed satisfaction with the deepening of the comprehensive global strategic partnership with the US and said he looked forward to a “productive visit and engaging conversation with President Biden on bilateral, regional and global issues”, according to a readout from External Affairs. ministry.
Sullivan said the collaboration was about much more than technology. “It’s about our interpersonal relationships. It is about building the skills of our residents. It is about building habits of trust and confidence between every element of our societies and governments, it is about deepening our defense cooperation in ways that will serve us strategically and economically,” he said.
The visit once again underscores the deepening ties between India and the US, which will be further strengthened when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Washington DC. A partnership spanning several areas will be key to New Delhi’s plans to counter Chinese aggression.
In addition to the limited discussions between Doval and Sullivan on Tuesday, separate groups held discussions on seven specific areas of cooperation – AI and quantum computing, advanced materials, defense, semiconductors, next-generation telecommunications, biotechnology and space.
People familiar with the matter said the focus is on concrete results ahead of Modi’s visit to the US, removing barriers and aligning the two countries’ export control regulations. “This is a work in progress, although we have made significant progress in just six months. Export controls are more on the US side,” said one of the people cited above.
Doval noted that the two sides have established a quantum coordination mechanism, signed a memorandum of understanding on semiconductors and launched a public-private dialogue on telecommunications to promote cooperation in Open RAN, 5G and 6G. There were also important exchanges on AI and “positive momentum” on the defense and space pillars, he said.
Sullivan noted that both sides are working to address issues that stand in the way of maximizing the full potential of cooperation. The takeaways from Modi’s visit “are not just bullet points on a page”, he said.
“They’re basically designed to remove those barriers to defense trade, to hi-tech trade, to investment in each of our countries, to remove barriers that have stood in the way of better collaboration between our scientists and researchers, and to stimulate better access for our students going both ways, for Americans coming to India, for Indians coming to the US,” he added.
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