US President Donald Trump has invited Indian PM Narendra Modi for a visit sometime later this year. The invitation was made during a phone conversation between the two in which both pledged to stand “shoulder-to-shoulder” in the global fight against terrorism, the White House said.
A White House read-out on the call was largely anodyne, saying “President Trump emphasised that the United States considers India a true friend and partner in addressing challenges around the world.” The two discussed opportunities to strengthen the partnership between the US and India in broad areas such as the economy and defence, it added.
It said they also discussed security in the region of South and Central Asia, without explicitly mentioning any country, even as the Trump administration's withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), its dossing of NATO, and its general disengagement from global affairs is unnerving many countries that see Washington ceding influence to China.
There was a cautious element to the read-out, which contained none of the gushing superlatives Trump plied on India and Modi during his campaign, and none of the comical hyperbole that was reported by Pakistan in Trump's conversation with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif after Trump's electoral win.
The fact that the Trump administration chose to identify India as a “friend and a partner” suggested continuity, was consonant with the terminology of the Obama and Bush era, and New Delhi's own outlook, despite the desire in some quarters to elevate the relationship to an “alliance.” Calling New Delhi ahead of other capitals also appears to point to the relatively uncomplicated nature of US-India ties, despite some of Trump's nationalistic campaign rhetoric presaging tough times for New Delhi on the trade and economic front, particularly where it concerns work visas and off-shore manufacturing.
The White House did not elaborate on the precise nature of the discussion the readout referred to on “strengthening the partnership... in broad areas such as the economy and defence,” but it is obvious that there will be a lot on the table when the two sides meet- and it will look very different from what was on the table during the Bush-Obama years.
