* US to help India develop 3 smart cities
WASHINGTON, Sept 30:
Furthering Indo-US cooperation on terrorism, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama today agreed to make “joint and concerted efforts” to dismantle safe havens for terror and criminal networks like LeT, JeM, D-company, Al-Qaeda and Haqqani network.
In their first Summit meeting spread over two hours at the White House, the two leaders also agreed that the two countries will take steps to disrupt financial and tactical support to these terror outfits.
After the meeting between Modi and Obama, officials made it clear that India was not going to join “any coalition” in fight against terrorism in West Asia. Likewise, they clarified that a trilateral partnership agreed on Afghanistan, would be developmental in nature and not military cooperation.
They also said that the “joint and concerted efforts” on dismantling safe havens for terrorist groups and criminal networks do not mean that India and the US were going to launch operations but carry out any UN-mandated task.
Modi and Obama, whose discussions covered a broad range of issues including cooperation in defence, security, energy economic and space, took a significant decision to break the impasse on implementation of civil nuclear deal.
“We are serious about resolving issues on both sides in civil nuclear energy cooperation. This is important to India for meeting energy security needs,” Modi said.
An inter-agency contact group will be set up to address the issues of liability, administrative and technical issues. From the Indian side, agencies like DAE, MEA and Finance Ministry will be involved.
“We are setting up an inter-agency contact group to be able to resolve all issues that are outstanding and hindering the rapid deployment of US-origin nuclear reactors in India, that includes by liability, it includes administrative issues and it includes technical issues,” Vikram Doraiswami, Joint Secretary (Americas), in the MEA, told reporters while briefing on the meeting between Modi and Obama.
Doraiswamy said while India was not going to join any coalition against terrorism, the two sides had agreed on the need to deal with “travellers of terrorism” — radicalised people who travel for participating in terror activities in West Asia.
“This is a very major issue for us,” he said.
On Afghanistan, Modi and Obama discussed the political, security and economic transition which is underway. “We continue to be very supportive of the transition process in Afghanistan,” the Indian official said.
Holding that India and the US are natural global partners, the two countries extended defence cooperation for another 10 years. Modi invited US companies to participate in defence manufacturing sector in India, which has recently raised the FDI cap from 26 to 49 per cent.
Expanding on the strategic partnership, Obama said India meets the standards of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and is “now ready” for the membership of the elite Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a 48-member body which controls global nuclear trade.
Obama also reaffirmed US support for India’s membership of the expanded UN Security Council and backed it for “voice and vote” in international financial institutions like IMF and World Bank.
The US will help India in developing three smart cities in Allahabad, Ajmer and Visakhapatnam apart from joining coordinated efforts with civil society and local authorities to provide clean water and sewage facilities in 500 cities in the country.
This announcement was made after the talks between Modi and Obama here today.
The Indian government plans to develop 100 smart cities and in this regard an allocation of Rs 7,060 crore was proposed in the Union Budget.
India and US also agreed to extend their defence agreement for another 10 years which is expected to give a big boost to cooperation in this key area between the two countries.
After the Summit-level meeting between Modi and Obama, both sides decided to extend the pact, said Vikram Doraiswami, Joint Secretary (Americas) in the Ministry of External Affairs.
The framework agreement, which will expire next year, was signed here in 2005 by then Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and his US counterpart Donald Rumsfeld.
The pact had laid strong foundations leading to mutually beneficial defence cooperation between the two countries through security dialogue, service-level exchanges, defence exercises and defence trade and technology collaboration.
The renewal of the pact had figured at meeting Defence Minister Arun Jaitley had with his American counterpart Chuck Hagel last month in New Delhi.
In the meeting, the two sides had decided to take steps for extension of the pact besides agreeing to enhance cooperation in joint production and development of defence equipment.
The US has been pushing defence deals with India worth over Rs 20,000 crore, including the sale of Apache attack choppers, Chinook heavylift helicopters and the Javelin anti-tank guided missiles.
It has already sold equipment worth Rs 60,000 crore in the last 10 years to India but none of these weapon sales programme is about joint production or co-development and does not include transfer of technology.
India has raised the FDI cap in defence sector recently from 26 per cent to 49 per cent with an aim of boosting indigenous defence production. India imports almost 70 per cent of its defence needs from foreign sources.
Noting that he and President Barack Obama were meeting just days after the Indian and the US missions reached Mars, Narendra Modi said that after the Indo-US summit on the Red Planet, it’s the turn of the leaders of the two nations to meet here on earth.
“This happy coincidence captures the potential of our relationship,” Modi said, during a joint press event with President Obama.
India had on September 24 created space history by successfully placing its low-cost Mars spacecraft in orbit around the Red Planet in its very first attempt, catapulting the country into an elite club of three nations.
Modi and Obama pledged to push the bilateral relationship to “new levels”, resolve issues blocking implementation of the civil nuclear deal and cooperate in counter terrorism.
During their hour-long discussions, which covered a broad range of issues including economic cooperation, trade and investment, Modi raised the demand for easier access to Indian services in the US.
After the two countries reached an agreement on extending their defence cooperation for ten more years, the Prime Minister invited American companies to participate in Indian defence manufacturing sector.
The discussions, the first formal meeting between the two leaders spread over delegation and restricted levels, covered terrorism in South Asia and emerging threats in West Asia.
At a joint media appearance with Obama, Modi expressed the hope that India-US relations will make fast progress.
“Both of us are committed taking forward the civil nuclear partnership agreement. We are serious about resolving at the earliest issues relating to civil nuclear energy cooperation. This is important for India for meeting energy security needs,” he said.
The Indo-US nuclear deal concluded between the previous Manmohan Singh government and the Bush Administration has been stalled because of issues relating to libality laws.
At the same time, Modi said that he had requested Obama to “take such steps which would ensure easier access to Indian companies in the service sector in the US market”.
In the defence sector, the prime minister said both the sides decided to take forward the dialogue in security and defence.
He invited the US defence companies to participate in Indian defence manufacturing sector to help in its development.
India has recently raised the foreign investment cap in the defence sector from 26 to 49 per cent.
Sharing concerns over the threat of terrorism in South Asia and emerging challenges in West Asia, where Islamist group ISIS has been on the rampage, Modi said the two countries agreed to intensify cooperation in counter terrorism and intelligence sharing.
Obama said India was emerging as a major power for peace and security in the region.
Both of them had a candid discussion about WTO issues. “India supports trade facilitation but it is my wish that a solution should take care of our food security concerns. I am sure that it is possible to do that early.”
“I am looking forward to building up on relationship and make more progress,” he said.
The President said the two leaders discussed various issues including trade and economic cooperation, cooperate in exploration of space and scientific developments especially to deal with challenges like Ebola.
Expressing confidence that their bilateral economic ties would improve further, Modi today sought easier access for Indian service companies to the US economy during his talks with President Barack Obama.
Modi, who has met with a galaxy of American corporate leaders during his five-day visit, also discussed economic as well as WTO issues with Obama.
The Prime Minister asked Obama to “take steps whereby our (India’s) service companies can get access to the American economy”.
Indian service companies have good presence in the US, which is the world’s largest economy, but there have been issues related to visas for IT professionals from India.
The Prime Minister said both countries had a multitude of common economic priorities. “We already have the foundation of a strong partnership. We now have to revive the momentum and ensure that we get the best out of it for our people and the world,” he said.
The Prime Minister voiced confidence that “our economic relations will improve even further”.
Modi’s maiden visit to the US as Prime Minister also comes against the backdrop of his government looking to attract more foreign investments as part of efforts to bolster the economy.
The major initiatives taken by the government include ‘Make In India’ campaign that is aimed at making the country a global manufacturing hub, creating huge employment avenues, as well as strengthen trade and economic growth.
Bilateral trade between the two countries in goods stood at nearly USD 64 billion last year while there has been substantial foreign direct investment flows from the US.
Earlier, calling for a new agenda in a novel joint editorial, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Barack Obama today pledged themselves as global partners to enhancing homeland security by sharing intelligence through counter-terrorism and law enforcement cooperation.
Writing in the Washington Post, the two leaders also said India and the US will work jointly to maintain freedom of navigation to lawful commerce across the seas, in significant comments against the backdrop China flexing its muscle over disputes with its neighbours in East and South China seas.
“As global partners, we are committed to enhancing our homeland security by sharing intelligence, through counter-terrorism and law-enforcement cooperation, while we jointly work to maintain freedom of navigation and lawful commerce across the seas,” they said.
Referring to the relationship, Modi and Obama said though the it was robust, reliable, enduring and expanding, the true potential of the ties was yet to be fully realised and the advent of a new government in India was a natural opportunity to broaden and deepen the engagement.
“Still, the true potential of our relationship has yet to be fully realised. The advent of a new government in India is a natural opportunity to broaden and deepen our relationship.
“With a reinvigorated level of ambition and greater confidence, we can go beyond modest and conventional goals. It is time to set a new agenda, one that realizes concrete benefits for our citizens,” Modi and Obama said, hours before their summit meeting at the White House.
They said the it will be an agenda which will enable both the countries to find mutually rewarding ways to expand collaboration in trade, investment and technology that harmonise with India’s ambitious development agenda, while sustaining the US as the global engine of growth.
Modi and Obama said “Today our relationship involves more bilateral collaboration than ever before – not just at the federal level but also at the state and local levels, between our two militaries, private sectors and civil society.
“Indeed, so much has happened that, in 2000, then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee could declare that we are natural allies.”
Modi and Obama said they will aim for the strategic partnership to be “larger” than merely the sum of its parts to ensure a better future for the citizens of the two countries as well as to the world at large.
“While India benefits from the growth generated by U S investment and technical partnerships, the United States benefits from a stronger, more prosperous India. In turn, the region and the world benefit from the greater stability and security that our friendship creates.
They lauded the role being played by the “vibrant” Indian American community saying it has been a living bridge between the two nations.
Both the leaders said they will discuss ways to enhance cooperation in trade, science and technology and government-to-government level to help improve the quality, reliability and availability of basic services in India.
“In this, the United States stands ready to assist. An immediate area of concrete support is the “Clean India” campaign, where we will leverage private and civil society innovation, expertise and technology to improve sanitation and hygiene throughout India,” they said.
Referring to areas of deeper cooperation, Modi and Obama said collaboration in health sector will help tackling the “toughest of challenges” like combating the spread of Ebola, researching cancer cures or conquering diseases such as tuberculosis, malaria and dengue.
Talking about the existing cooperation, they said “our militaries conduct joint exercises in air, on land and at sea, and our space programmes engage in unprecedented areas of cooperation, leading us from Earth to Mars.”
“The exploration of space will continue to fire our imaginations and challenge us to raise our ambitions. That we both have satellites orbiting Mars tells its own story. The promise of a better tomorrow is not solely for Indians and Americans: It also beckons us to move forward together for a better world.
“This is the central premise of our defining partnership for the 21st century. Forward together we go – chalein saath saath,” the two leaders said.
They said natural and unique partnership between India and the US can help shape international security and peace.
“Ties between the United States and India are rooted in the shared desire of our citizens for justice and equality. When Swami Vivekananda presented Hinduism as a world religion, he did so at the 1893 World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago.
“When Martin Luther King Jr. Sought to end discrimination and prejudice against African Americans, he was inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s nonviolent teachings. Gandhiji himself drew upon the writings of Henry David Thoreau,” they said. (PTI)
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