The US is launching a series of ambitious technology, space and defence initiatives with India, in an effort designed to counter China in the Indo-Pacific and wean New Delhi off its reliance on Russia for weapons.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval met in Washington on Tuesday as the two countries unveiled co-operation in a number of areas, including quantum computing, artificial intelligence, 5G wireless networks and semiconductors. They also created a mechanism to facilitate joint weapons production.
The Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies marks the latest move by US President Joe Biden to work more closely with allies and partners to counter China. It follows an agreement between Biden and India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, to create the initiative when they met in Tokyo in May 2022.