India- USA relations

Evolution

• Despite their shared affinities of constitutional democracy, liberal politics and

civic nationalism, the US and India have not enjoyed consistently warm relations.
• During the Cold War era, they were referred to as ‘estranged democracies’.
• Since 2000, the two have evolved into closer partnership.

Phase I- 1947-1971/ The phase of cooperation and competition:

• Reason- While India and the US were in different camps during the cold war, it
wanted India to be part of its zone of influence. Thus, both conflict and
cooperation were operational during this phase.

The evidence of competition

i. The Indian policy of non-alignment was identified as India's opportunism by the

USA, while NAM was criticized as team B of the USSR
ii. When India took the issue of Kashmir to the UN, the USA supported Pakistan's
point of view and got Kashmir listed as a disputed territory between the two
countries.
iii. India was the first non-communist country to recognize China.
iv. India opposed the USA in identifying China as an aggressor in the Korean
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conflict.
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The evidence of cooperation

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i. The USA did not militarily support Pakistan in its first and second wars against
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India despite Pakistan being a camp follower of the USA.

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[Pakistan was a member of SEATO and CENTO]

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ii. The USA supported India in its Food crisis in the 1960s [PL 480 scheme and
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Technology support during the green revolution]

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iii. Though Pakistan was in the US camp, it did not support it militarily.

Phase II- 1971-1990 / Phase of competition alone

I. Reason:

i. The USA was disillusioned with India because of India's relentless criticism of
the USA's participation in the Vietnam war.
ii. While the USA finalized its rapprochement with China, India signed a treaty of
Peace and Friendship with the USSR.

II. Evidence:

i. As a consequence India's soviet tilt became evident and the USA sent its naval
vessel enterprise into the Indian Ocean to threaten India in its 1971 war with
Pakistan.
 ii. 1974 nuclear test by India; Establishment of NSG by USA in 1975. This
institutionalized Nuclear Apartheid against India.

Phase III- 1990 onwards since the end of the cold war

• The world order changed- Disintegration of India's most trusted ally, the USSR, and
the emergence of the USA as the then single superpower.
• It is in this context, India wanted to pursue good relations with the USA. However,
the relations continued as before, and the two countries until the year 2000.

2000 afterward

• It was after India conducted Operation Shakti and declared itself to be a de-facto
Nuclear weapon state, the US entered into negotiations with India which resulted in the
two countries developing better understanding of each other. Thereby in the year 2000
the two countries entered into partnership.
• Other factors that contributed to the growth of their ties-

i. Economic reform of India and the growing attractiveness of the Indian

economy.
ii. Rise of China and recognition of India as an important balancing power.

Areas of cooperation om
Defense:
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• Defense has emerged as the primary pillar of India - USA relations.

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• India- USA defence relations have come of age. Beginning in 1965 till 2005, the
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USA did not provide any military equipment to India while at present, the defense
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trade is over 20 billion dollars.

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• Presently, India has acquired a number of Defense equipment from the USA
including P-8 aircraft and is co-developing systems such as air-launched drones
which have taken the relations beyond the buyer-seller level.

• Defence trade has gathered momentum-

a) Since the Nuclear hurdle was overcome in 2008 with India-USA civil Nuclear
deal.

b) Opening up of the Indian economy and the bilateral trade in goods and
services which stood at $20 bn in the 2000s; have exceeded $140 bn presently.

c) 4 million strong Indian Diaspora in the USA which has become influential.
It acts as a pressure group in favor of India - USA relations.

d) A Bipartisan consensus in the USA with respect to India.

• Presently, India- USA strategic partnership is driven by
a) Need to contain the rise of China
b) To ensure free and open Indo-pacific

• Evidence of ongoing defense cooperation:

1) In 2005, a 10-year framework for the defense relationship was established;

it was renewed in 2015.
The framework lays out an institutional mechanism for various areas of
cooperation including joint exercises, intelligence exchange, joint training for
multinational exercises including disaster relief, technology transfer, etc.

2) In 2016, the USA designated India "A major defense partner" [* USA took
cognizance of the fact that India was neither an adversary nor a junior partner
and India demanded equality in status].

3) India by 2020, joined all 4 foundational agreements of the USA.

a) General security of military information agreement: India entered
into this in 2002 [GSOMIA].
b) Logistics exchange memorandum of agreement: India entered into
LEMOA in 2016. It will give access to both country's designated naval
facilities for refuelling and replenishment.
c) Communications compatibility and security agreement: India
entered in 2018 which permitted India access to CENTRIXS- Encrypted
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standards of communication. [** Earlier it was CISMOA, to which India

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had its own concern, so COMCASA was signed. It is India specific

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agreement]
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d) Basic exchange and cooperation agreement on geospatial

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information: India entered into BECA in 2020.

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4) In 2018, 2+2 dialogue at the ministerial level was launched.

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5) 2018, India was placed in category 1 of strategic trade authorization (STA-

1) easing exports of sensitive technology to India.

6) In 2019, an Industrial Security Annex to GSOMIA was finalized. It allows

the US government to share classified data with Indian private defense firms.
Until now, it was limited to defence PSUs and the government.

This ISA (Industrial security annex) will give a boost to the Indian private sector
looking for a greater role in defense manufacturing.

7) Since 2015, India and USA have been collaborating on aircraft defense
technology with the USA assisting India in Indigenous manufacturing of the
same.
• The way forward:

a) USA should continue to liberalize the rules regarding the export of US

defense technology to India including dual-use technologies.
 Such technology sharing will build India's strategic capacity, help wean off
Indian dependence on Russian armaments and provide evidence of the USA as
a reliable partner and not a fickle one.

II. Indo-pacific

• Both these countries emphasize free and open Indo-pacific.

• Despite their closeness vis-a-vis the Indo-pacific policy – to ensure rule-based Indo-
Pacific and check revisionist Chinese disruption in the region -there are differences
in the two country's outlook vis-a-vis this region.

a) Geographical expanse- For the USA it terminates at the western coast of India
while for India it extends from the East African coast to the Pacific coast of the USA
i.e., according to India, west Asia, and Eastern Africa are part of the Indian- pacific
region.

b) India gives substantial Importance to the continental dimension of Indo-

pacific. This is so because it is both a land and maritime power. However, the USA
privileges the maritime balancing of China. For India, countries like Iran and Russia
are important for the continental aspect of the Indo-pacific.

c) The USA gives prime priority to the Pacific ocean while India's immediate
priority is the Indian ocean. Thus, the USA has sought security balancing of China
through AUKUS [Australia, UK, USA] by sharing nuclear submarine technology
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with Australia and seeks to reduce strategic pressure from itself.
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QUAD
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1. QUAD began as a loose partnership after the devastating 2004 Tsunami. The 4
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countries joined together to provide HADR [Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief
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].
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2. In 2007, the first meeting of QUAD took place but then it became dormant for a decade.
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Reason: India and Australia were wary of the Chinese reaction.

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3. Quad was revived in 2017.

Reasons for revival:-

a) Growing Chinese belligerence- all the four countries of QUAD were victim to
it. India - China Doklam standoff; China- Japan Discord over the Senkaku Islands
especially after its nationalization by Japan in 2012; the trade war between China
and USA; Chinese aggressive behavior in South China sea Built artificial island
and militarized them and claimed 2/3rd of the vast expanse of south china sea
through their Nine dash line.
b) All 4 countries have a vested interest in ensuring rule-based Indo-pacific along
with freedom of navigation and trade.

4. The QUAD has been upgraded to a summit level in :

March 2021- first summit in virtual mode
 September 2021- second QUAD in-person summit
March 2022 - third QUAD Summit in in virtual mode and
May 2022- the 4th summit was held in-person format.

The regularity of the summits indicates the importance being assigned to QUAD.

5. All 4 countries including the USA, under both Trump and Biden administrations, seek
QUAD as a key to their Indo-pacific strategy, particularly to counter assertive China.

Expansion of Membership

• South Korea has expressed interest in joining QUAD, but QUAD is not
contemplating adjustments in its membership as of now.
• QUAD held QUAD+ meeting with South Korea, New Zealand and Vietnam.
• These countries could form future members of the expanded QUAD.

Achievements of Quad

In the past year, QUAD has transformed from a largely strategic theoretical grouping
based on free and open Indo-pacific to one with clearly identified sectors of cooperation
such as Infrastructure building, Cooperation in technology, climate change, etc

a) An Indo-pacific partnership for maritime domain awareness- It will

collate/aggregate satellite imagery to offer real-time maritime mapping to check
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piracy, and dark shipping [ships that go undetected ] and provide disaster relief.
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b) QUAD cyber-security partnership- and work closely on their space

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observation programs.
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c) They will extend more than $ 50bn for Infrastructure assistance in the Indo-
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pacific region over the next 5 years.

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d) They have agreed to distribute 1 bn COVID-19 vaccines in Asia to counter

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Chinese vaccine diplomacy.

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e) They will cooperate vis-a-vis critical technology such as 5G supplier

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diversification, ensure resilient Supply chains for semiconductor supplies, etc.

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f) QUAD people- to people ties, QUAD fellowship to the students of the member
countries to pursue graduate degrees in STEM (Science, technology, engineering,
and mathematics) studies.

Shortcomings of QUAD

1) Low on Ambitions

At a time when USA funding to Ukraine crossed $54 bn within months of the war,
QUAD pledging $50 bn in 5 years from 4 countries seems relatively small.

QUAD fellowship would be privately funded.

2) Strategic depth is shallow-

 There exist no Quad level military-to-military arrangements without which countering
China would be difficult.

Even on the issue of China, QUAD members have differences. For example, all QUAD
members except India support Taiwan's inclusion as an observer to World Health
Assembly.

3) India's close relations with Russia-

Unlike the other three members, India has abstained from resolutions against Russia.
Also, India's membership of RIC [Russia- India-China], SCO, and BRICS- groupings
with Anti-West agenda.

QUAD is still a work in progress primarily driven by the top-down summits. It needs
more teeth to achieve its own agenda

India and Quad

Advantages for India-

1. To counter China in the Indo-pacific

2. India's growing status as a middle power and ability to project its influence
beyond its immediate neighborhood. om
Challenges posed by QUAD for India
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1. India's involvement in QUAD could risk alienating India from its important
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neighbouring countries like Myanmar and Iran who are in fact entering into
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closer partnerships with China.

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2. India is the only country among the QUAD members to share its borders with
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China. If India engages militarily in QUAD, there emerges a risk of Chinese

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aggression at the border.

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3. India v/s the rest of the members of QUAD on sanctions against Russia: Russia
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is important for the continental balancing of China.

4. India is a member of groupings such as SCO, BRICS: Containing China through
QUAD might affect India's involvement in these organizations.
5. India and Japan were concerned vis-a-vis the formation of AUKUS (Australia,
UK, and, USA) and it undermining QUAD.

What does AUKUS formation mean for QUAD?

1. QUAD can maintain its broad agenda. It does not have to commit to an anti-
China security framework. Thus QUAD will continue as a plurilateral grouping
with a vision for free, open, transparent, and inclusive Indo-pacific.

This augurs well for India since India was reluctant to militarily balance China
under QUAD.
 India insists QUAD to have positive constructive agenda i.e., not against
someone but for something.

2. Under AUKUS, the USA is sharing coveted defence technology with one
member county of QUAD and not others.
3. AUKUS also undercuts USA's ally, France. If AUKUS leads to the weakening
of the French and the broader European commitment to the Indo-pacific then it
would only diminish the efficacy of the nascent security architecture and
deterrence framework in the region.

Thus, France and India reached out to one- another after the AUKUS was
announced. France assured India it to strengthen India's strategic autonomy in the
region.

Conclusion

• Despite India's reservation, QUAD is very important to India.

• It can provide a long-term strategy to deter China in the region especially given
that the Chinese strategy up till now has been less about the security
encirclement of India and more about economic investments.
• At the same time, QUAD keeps the door open for India to undertake close
defence cooperation with other member countries without resorting to a security
alliance.
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Chinese criticisms of QUAD
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1) China refers it to be the 'Asian NATO'. This is not so because,

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a) QUAD is not a defence pact.

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b) USA has clarified that QUAD is a 'Non-Defense, Non-Military' arrangement.

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c) The military cooperation that takes place between the member countries is at a
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bilateral level. Though all QUAD members participate in the Malabar exercise (Japan
Joined in 2015 and Australia joined the Malabar exercise in 2020), but it is not held
under the QUAD framework.

2) China has accused QUAD of 'enclosed small cliques'. According to China, it is one
of the sure ways to destroy the existing International order.

Reasons for such criticism

The QUAD countries are continuously trying to contain China and its growing
influence, for instance, by pledging to distribute one billion dosages of COVID-19
vaccine against the Chinese Vaccine diplomacy. By focusing on technology such as 5G
and Australia, Japan, and the USA have already banned the 5G Chinese service
provider, Huawei.
 3) Former Chinese foreign minister had referred to QUAD as ‘nothing more than sea
foam’ that would eventually dissipate.

However, contrary to Chinese expectations QUAD has over time only grown in strength.
It has emerged as the primary preferred platform for multilateral engagements among
member countries.

Trade and investment

• USA is India's largest trading partner with Bilateral trade setting a new record at
$146 bn in 2019.
• USA is also one of the largest sources of FDI with $48 bn in cumulative inward
investment from 2002-2021.

Counter-terrorism

• The two countries have put forth joint proposals to designate Pakistan-based
terrorists on the UNSC's 1267 list of terror entities. In recent months 4 such
proposals were put forth, each time to be vetoed by China.
• The scope of counter-terrorism cooperation between India and the USA has
increased with the USA withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Challenges in the relation om

I. Russia factor/Russian war on Ukraine- India and USA have responded to the Ukraine
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conflict differently and this has created tensions in their relationship.

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a) USA has condemned Russia's aggression.

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b) It has together with other like-minded states levied an extensive array of sanctions
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against Russia to cut it off from the global economic system.

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c) Although it has not become a combatant, the USA has supplied Ukraine with
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weaponry that it is using to resist the Russian invasion. In fact US aid has been critical
to Ukrainian ability to inflict losses on Russia.

India's reaction in contrast has been extremely guarded or circumspect:

a) India has avoided any substantive action against Russia.

b) It abstained from all UN resolutions against Russia.

c) However, India has encouraged peaceful resolutions to the crisis and has sent
humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

Reason for India's stand:

• Primarily, because of the Indian dependence on Russia for defense equipment.

 India is worried that any such criticism of Russia may lead it to cut-off military
supplies to India when India is in an ongoing confrontation with China along the
disputed Sino-Indian borders. It would be particularly damaging for India at this
time apart from a decade long well-rounded defense partnership with Russia.

In USA's view

• India's unwillingness, to speak against the invasion affords Russia de-facto support,
reducing its diplomatic isolation and facilitating its ongoing operations against
Ukraine.
• It undercuts India's appeal as a partner with a shared liberal vision of rule-based
international order.

However, this difference would not undo the logic of USA- India cooperation but nonetheless,
it creates tension in the bilateral ties.

The Biden administration at one point had reluctantly accepted India's "distinct relations"
with Russia and has expressed interest to develop such relations with it itself in the future.

II. The Pakistan factor : The recent US decision to provide Pakistan with a
maintenance package of $450 million for F-16 fighter jets sold by the US to it in the
past.

Stand of the USA om

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• US has justified the package as a sustenance program. The US has responsibility

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with respect to the military equipment it sells to other countries for their
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maintenance.
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• It has defended the package claiming that its relations between India and Pakistan
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are separate.
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• It would aid Pakistan's capability to deal with terror threats emerging from Pakistan
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and the region.

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Why New Delhi is concerned about it?

• It is USA's first military sale to Pakistan since the time the US acknowledged
Pakistan's double-dealing vis-a-vis Taliban and Afghanistan in 2017.
• It marks a revival in relations between the US and Pakistan. F-16 deals have
been barometer of their ties. And since 2018, US President Trump, tired of
Pakistan’s unkept promises on fighting terrorism and on Afghanistan cancelled all
further defence sales and support funding to Pakistan- the period began a low point
in US-Pakistan ties, especially with the Imran Khan government, which US
President Biden refused to meet or engage with.
The decision to provide $450 million worth of F-16 support and equipment marks
an uptick in US-Pakistan ties again.
• F-16 has in the past been used against India in the 2019 Balakot Skirmish.
 • India is worried that while India deals with aggression from China and focuses on
its resource there, any arming of Pakistan could alter the regional military
balance. India would be forced to deal with the threats on two fronts.
• The US deal would also cast a shadow on Indian plans to purchase F-21 fighter
jets which are seen as rebranded versions of F-16s.

Conclusion

• Given the close partnership between USA and India, The F-16 support deal alone
cannot disrupt the ties and will act only as a minor irritant in the relation.
• However, it is the larger ramification of a possible detente between USA and
Pakistan relations, that improves and plunges by the turn which is a concern for
India. Such improvements in the USA- Pakistan relations in past have resulted in
greater security threats for India.

Addressing the problem of third-party relationships (Role of Russian and

Pakistan factor)

• India and America will inevitably have close relations with the countries that the others
don't like such as Russia and Iran for India and Pakistan for the US. The other partner
must accept this reality and recognize that it does not undermine the strategic logic of
US- India cooperation.
• The relationship despite its closeness will thus be open and autonomous and not
exclusive. om
• However, when it comes to the third party at maximum, the partner countries can draw
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red lines for the other to not cross. India and US should identify and communicate with
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each other's Red lines vis-a-vis the third country.

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The present Ukrainian crisis as well as the sustenance package to Pakistan provide an
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opportunity for the two countries to discuss and agree on the same. Doing so can help
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them to avoid misunderstandings in the future.

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US-led minerals security partnership:

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• India has not been included in the US-led minerals security partnership comprising 11
countries
• It aims to secure and strengthen supply chains of critical minerals.

Other challenges

• Regulations vis-a-vis trade, labor laws, environmental laws, investor-state dispute

settlement mechanism, IPR, data localization.

The general conclusion of India- USA relation

• India and the USA are strategic partners today in the true sense of the terms but a
partnership among mature powers is never about seeking a complete convergence.
 • It is about managing differences by ensuring a continuous dialogue and channelling
differences into crafting new opportunities.
• India- USA relations are vital not just at the bilateral level but at the global level as
well. They have been identified by ORF- & Heritage foundation as the 'defining
partnership of this century.
• India has overcome 'Hesitations of History' in engaging with the US and has
transformed from the "Estranged democracies of the cold war era into
comprehensive global strategic partners of today".

Question- How has the USA-India relationship progressed from a bilateral relationship to a
multilateral relationship? Discuss.

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