Prime Minister Modi’s State Visit & Achievements (Specials)

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi completed a four-day state visit to the United States. Judging by the attention paid to Modi’s arrival and the deals announced, both countries came away with winning outcomes, singly and jointly.

Key-highlights:

• Modi was not only feted with a welcome ceremony and state dinner, but was also invited to address Congress for the second time during his prime ministership.
• These high-profile events were intended to reflect the two countries’ shared commitment to peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and signify that the United States sees India as a critical partner.
• Win-win situation for India: The United States also offered concrete wins. The Biden administration promised to help India-
  • increase production of electric vehicles
  • meet its goal of installing 500 gigawatts of wind, solar, and other renewable energy this decade
  • U.S. memory chip firm Micron Technology will invest up to $825 millionin a new chip assembly and test plant in Gujarat, which will be its first factory in India.
  • On immigration, the United States agreed to allow a small number of Indians on H-1B visas to renew them in the United Stateswithout traveling abroad.

How US gained from the visit?

The United States too made symbolic and material gains.

• In terms of symbolic wins, the United States was able to showcase its close partnership with India—a country that also shares its deep anxiety about the specter of a rising China—and highlight the exchange of effusive warm statements between President Biden and Prime Minister Modi a mere two days after the former labelled President of China Xi Jinping a “dictator.” 
• Material wins:
  • Indian solar panel maker Vikram Solar Limited will invest up to $1.5 billion in the U.S. solar energysupply chain.
  • India has also agreed to join the S.-led Artemis Accordson space exploration and will work with NASA on a joint mission to the International Space Station in 2024.
  • India will remove retaliatory tariffs imposed on U.S. products such as chickpeas and appleswithout the expectation that the United States will remove its own tariffs on steel and aluminum imports that had initially led to these retaliatory tariffs.

Important Agreements:

• U.S. Company General Electric has signed a memorandum of understanding with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited to produce fighter jet engines for the Indian Air Force.
• India’s defense ministry has approved the purchase of armed MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones(a type of Predator drone) made by General Atomics, which will enhance the intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities of India’s armed forces across domains. Currently, only some U.S. allies own Predator drones.
• The two countries also established a Joint Indo-U.S. Quantum Coordination Mechanismto facilitate joint research between public and private sectors.
• They also launched the INDUS-X partnershipto expand their strategic technology and defense industrial cooperation.
• India also agreed to join the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), a S.-led partnershipwith twelve other countries plus the European Union, to create critical energy minerals supply chains.

‘GE 414 Jet Engines’: India-US technology Transfer

• Both the countries have announced to sign a MoU for the co-production in India of ‘GE 414 Jet Engines’ for the Tejas Mk2 light combat aircraft.
• The deal is about manufacturing jet engines in India for Light Combat Aircraft `Tejas’ Mk2 and later for AMCA.
• The deal was between the US engine manufacturer General Electric and state owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

About the F414-GE-INS6 technology:

• This is an Indian version of the F414-GE-100 turbofan engine, which is used to power the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
• The ‘INS6 variant’ has a number of improvements, including:
• A higher thrust rating of 22,000 pounds (98 kN)
• A Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) system

Key features required for Indian missile needs:

• Performance: The F414-GE-INS6 is a high-performance engine that provides the Tejas Mk II with the thrust and power it needs to meet India’s demanding Air Force and Naval requirements.
  • It has a thrust-to-weight ratio of 9.4:1, which gives the Tejas Mk II excellent acceleration and climb performance.
  • It also has a high top speed of Mach 2.0 and a range of over 1,000 miles.
• Reliability: The F414-GE-INS6 has a proven track record of reliability. It has over 10 million hours of flight time accumulated, and it has been used in a variety of military aircraft, including the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and the JAS 39 Gripen.
• Cost: The F414-GE-INS6 is a cost-effective engine. It is priced competitively, and it has low maintenance costs.

India joins ‘Artemis Accords’:

• Artemis Accords ensures that space exploration is conducted in a safe, sustainable and transparent manner and in full compliance with international law.
• The founding members of the Artemis Accords are Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the US.
• As more countries establish a presence in outer space, via research stations, satellites, or even rocket launchers, these accords provide a set of principles to create a safe and transparent environment that inspires exploration, science, and commercial activities.

India joins US-led Minerals Security Partnership (MSP)

• Mineral Security Partnership (MSP) is a US-led collaboration that aims to catalyse public and private investment in critical mineral supply chains globally.
• The MSP includes Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Sweden, UK, the European Commission, Italy, and now India.
• It will focus on the supply chains of minerals such as Cobalt, Nickel, Lithium and also the 17 ‘rare earth’
• The alliance is seen as primarily focused on evolving an alternative to China, which has created processing infrastructure in rare earth minerals and has acquired mines in Africa for elements such as Cobalt.
• Goal:
  • The goal of the MSP is to ensure that critical minerals are produced, processed, and recycled in a manner that supports the ability of countries to realize the full economic development benefit of their geological endowments.
  • This grouping is aimed at catalysing investment from governments and the private sector to develop strategic opportunities.
• Need: Demand for critical minerals, which are essential for clean energy and other technologies, is projected to expand significantly in the coming decades.
• Significance: The MSP will help catalyse investment from governments and the private sector for strategic opportunities — across the full value chain — that adhere to the highest environmental, social, and governance standards.

Reason for India to join MSP:

• To find alternative of China: The proposal for India to become a part MSP comes after a strong diplomatic push at reducing dependency on China for securing critical minerals.
• To break the increasing monopoly: As China is a strong player in the critical mineral space and has created processing infrastructure in rare earth minerals and has also acquired mines in Africa for sourcing elements such as cobalt, has become a concern for other countries.

India’s position on Critical minerals:

• Though India has 6% of the world’s rare earth reserves, it only produces 1% of global output, and meets most of its requirements of such minerals from China.
• In 2018-19, for instance, 92% of rare earth metal imports by value and 97% by quantity were sourced from China.
• In India, monazite and thorium is the principal source of rare earths.

Conclusion

To conclude, this visit had a significant impact on India's global standing, highlighting the country's dual identity as a spiritual democracy and an economic power.