Joe Biden, President of the United States

Prime Minister and I have just finished a very productive meeting. Prime Minister I know you got to go to Capitol Hill very soon and address the joint session of the Congress. It's a testament to the strong and enduring and thoroughly bipartisan support that exists all across the United States for the friendship and partnership between the United States that they are anxiously waiting to hear you up on Capitol Hill.

A partnership that is among the most consequential in the world, that is stronger, closer, and more dynamic than at any time in history. Prime Minister, we met many times over the past few years, most recently in Hiroshima at the G7 summit, and each time I was struck by our ability to find new areas of cooperation. Together, we're unlocking the shared future of what I believe to be unlimited potential. And with this visit, we're demonstrating once more, how indeed the United States are collaborating on nearly every human endeavour, and delivering progress across the board- from designing new ways to diagnose and treat illnesses, like cancer and diabetes, to collaborating on human spaceflight, including sending an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station in 2024, to accelerating the global clean energy transition, and tackling climate crisis we face to harnessing our shared expertise on critical and emerging technologies, like quantum computing, and artificial intelligence to ensuring they are not used as tools of misinformation and oppression. We are doubling down on our cooperation to secure our semiconductor supply chains, advancing open ran telecommunications networks, and growing our major defense partnership with more joint exercises, more cooperation between our defense industries, and more consultation and coordination across all domains. Our economic relationship is booming. Trade between our countries has almost doubled over the past decade to more than $191 billion, supporting tens and thousands of good jobs in both India and the United States. Add to that 1 million American jobs across 44 states will be supported by the purchase of more than 200 American-made Boeing aircraft which Air India announced earlier this year. And with this visit, Indian firms are announcing more than $2 billion in new investments- in manufacturing solar in Colorado, steel in Ohio, optic fiber in South Carolina, and much more. Further proof that America's manufacturing is back.

We're expanding educational exchanges for our students, building on the record 1,25,000 student visas for Indians to study in the United States we issued last year, and opening new consulates that are going to make it easier for our people to travel, work and collaborate together.

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On issues that matter most and that will define the future, our nations look to one another, including on critical regional and global issues. Today, we also talked about our shared efforts to mitigate humanitarian tragedies, unleashed by Russia's brutal war in Ukraine, and to defend the core principles of the UN Charter, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. We discussed our work through the Quad, and how India and the United States, together with Australia and Japan can ensure the vital Indo-Pacific region remains free, open, prosperous and secure. Through our new I2U2 grouping with Israel in the UAE we're building regional connections to the Middle East, and spurring science-based solutions to global challenges like food security, and clean energy.

This year under India's leadership with the G20, we're putting sustainable development at the center of the agenda. We're delivering meaningful action on low and middle-income nations, including multilateral development bank reform, debt relief, and building resilient and equitable health systems.

The bottom line is simple. We want people everywhere, to have the opportunity to live in dignity. Indians and Americans are both peoples who innovate and create, turn obstacles into opportunities, find strength in community and family and cherish freedom and celebrate the democratic values of universal human rights, which face challenges around the world and in each of our countries, but which remains so vital to the success of each of our nations- press freedom, religious freedom, tolerance, diversity.

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India is now the most populous country in the world. It's a democracy and we understand that it is the brilliance and the backbone of our people. As diverse and talents and traditions make us strong as a nation democracies do that. We see that so clearly here in the United States, where a vibrant Indian American community of more than 4 million strong contributes every single day to the writing of the future of our nation. Indian Americans of every background and faith, representing the full diversity of India are pursuing their American dream while maintaining deep connections with their Indian heritage and families. That makes us all stronger. That is a cornerstone of this essential partnership between India and the United States and that is why I know the friendship between our nations is only going to grow as we face the future together.

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First Published:Jun 23, 2023 12:35 AM IST