Trump pushes strategic alliance with India, announces defence deals

India and the United States will expand their strategic partnership with cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region and multibillion-dollar defence deals, President Donald Trump announced on Monday, moves seen as counterbalancing China’s rise in Asia.

The US president made the announcements while addressing a crowd of about 125,000 spectators at a cricket stadium in the Indian city of Ahmedabad, along with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Modi rolled out the red carpet for Trump, who has taken time out of an election year for a brief visit focused solely on India. Modi received Trump and his wife, Melania, at the airport in Ahmedabad.

Tens of thousands of people waving Indian and American flags lined their route to the stadium. Groups of performers from various regions of India sang and danced on narrow stages along the way showcasing India’s cultural diversity.

“I believe the United States should be India’s premier defence partner and that’s the way it’s working out. Together we will defend our sovereignty, security and protect a free and open Indo-Pacific region for our children and for many, many generations to come,” Trump said.

“I am pleased to announce [that on Tuesday] our representatives will sign deals to sell over 3 billion dollars in absolutely finest state of the art helicopters and other equipment to the Indian armed forces.”

Washington sees India as a counterbalance to China’s growing military and political influence in Asia. Defence and strategic ties seem to be top of the agenda of the visit, which was earlier expected to lead to a breakthrough trade pact.

Trade disputes have overshadowed India-US relations for the past three years and Trump said during his speech that an overarching trade deal was still in early stages of discussion. Trump said Modi was a tough negotiator.

To loud cheers from the spectators, Trump also said his administration had been working “in a very positive way with Pakistan to crack down on terrorist organizations and militants that operate on the Pakistani border” and that there were signs of big progress which would bring stability to the region.

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India has held Pakistan responsible for backing militants who have carried out major attacks in India, including in Mumbai in 2008.

At the main Trump-Modi talks scheduled for Tuesday, the two sides are looking to finalize pacts in specific areas such as intellectual property rights, trade facilitation and homeland security.

US firm Westinghouse and India’s NPCIL are also in final talks on building six nuclear reactors in southern India, the result of a landmark nuclear accord in 2008, Indian diplomats said.

In their speeches in Ahmedabad, Modi and Trump hailed the India-US ties and praised each other.

“America loves India. America respects India, and America will always be a faithful and loyal friend to the Indian people,” Trump told the crowds.

“President Trump’s visit opens a new chapter in our relationship – a chapter that will document the progress and prosperity of the people of America and India,” Modi said.

This comes at a time when the US president is looking to garner votes from a large 4-million strong Indian American community in this year’s US elections.

Analysts point out that Trump’s visit could also boost Modi’s popularity at home at a time when the country is witnessing an economic slowdown and nationwide protests against a new citizenship law which critics say discriminates against Muslims.

The government of Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has denied the charge, saying the new law, which fast tracks citizenship for religious minorities escaping persecution from three neighbouring countries, but excludes Muslims, does not impact Indian citizens – neither Hindus nor Muslims.

But the protests have continued and a policeman was killed in New Delhi on Monday, hours before Trump was to land in the capital, as protesters supporting and opposing the law clashed, broadcaster NDTV reported.

In Ahmedabad, the main city in Modi’s home state of Gujarat, the audience at the stadium broke into applause and chants of “Modi, Modi, Modi” at the Namaste Trump event. “Namaste” is a welcome greeting in Hindi and Sanskrit which shows respect.

On the way to the stadium, the Trumps made a brief pit stop at the Sabarmati Ashram, or hermitage, in Ahmedabad where the leader of India’s freedom movement, Mahatma Gandhi, spent several years.

They were given a guided tour by Modi of the simple home where Gandhi developed his philosophy of non-violent non-cooperation against British rulers, which inspired many, including Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela.

Trump, accompanied by a high-powered delegation including Melania, his daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner, visited Agra later on Monday to see the Taj Mahal.

The delegation then flew to New Delhi for Trump’s planned talks with Modi on Tuesday.

DPA