Washington, June 22: The United States has granted approval for the joint production of GE’s F414 jet engines in India, marking a significant development in the bilateral relationship between the two nations. A senior White House official made this announcement on the eve of President Joe Biden’s official state dinner for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
As part of the landmark agreements, India is set to announce the procurement of MQ-9B armed Sea Guardian drones, concluding lengthy negotiations that spanned nearly seven years.
The officials who provided a preview of the meeting expressed their enthusiasm for the unprecedented scale and scope of the deliverables achieved in this new era of cooperation between the two countries. They acknowledged that India had been pleasantly surprised by the removal of bureaucratic hurdles to achieve these goals and emphasized the importance of following through on commitments.
India intends to utilize the GE F414 jet engines for its second generation of Tejas fighter jets, an upgrade from the current F404 engines assembled within the country. The F414 engines, also employed by the US American F/A-18 Super Hornets, will be co-produced by GE and India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
The MQ-9 Sea Guardian drones, developed by General Atomics, have long been on India’s wishlist. Since 2020, the Indian Navy has been utilizing two MQ-9A drones under a company-owned and operated lease agreement.
In addition to these defense agreements, the joint statement to be issued by the two leaders is expected to include the reinstatement of preferential trading benefits for Indian exports to the US. The Generalized System of Preferences, a scheme allowing certain Indian goods to enter the US without tariffs, was suspended by the Trump administration in 2019 due to a lack of market access concessions from India. The value of US imports from India under this scheme exceeded $6 billion at the time of suspension.
A multitude of joint initiatives and agreements are anticipated to be announced following President Biden’s meeting with Prime Minister Modi on Thursday morning. Officials involved in the negotiations describe the resulting cooperation as “mature.”
Among the anticipated agreements is a master ship repair agreement, whereby US navy ships will undergo repairs at Indian shipyards. This move aligns with the US objective of reducing India’s reliance on Russian military equipment. The US officials emphasized that India, along with its allies and partners such as France, Great Britain, Israel, and others, is actively engaged in diversifying its defense capabilities away from Russian suppliers.
Furthermore, collaborations in technology are expected to strengthen critical minerals supply chains, advance telecommunication capabilities, and foster developments in AI. The field of space exploration will also witness joint efforts, as NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have agreed to collaborate on human spaceflight.
Prior to the meetings, Prime Minister Modi enjoyed a private dinner with President Joe Biden at the White House on Wednesday evening. National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra accompanied the Prime Minister.
Following their discussions, the two leaders will address a press conference, during which Prime Minister Modi is anticipated to take questions—an unprecedented departure from past practices.
US officials assured that President Biden will raise concerns regarding human rights, democracy, and press freedom with Prime Minister Modi, but in a respectful manner befitting their friendship.
Later on Thursday, Prime Minister Modi will address a joint session of the US Congress for the second time. Subsequently, he will join President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden for a state dinner, which is expected to be attended by prominent members of the Indian American community.
