Red carpet welcome for Modi as US-India ties set to deepen

Separately, Ms Lisa Curtis, senior fellow and director of the Indo-Pacific Security Programme at the Centre for a New American Security, told ST: “The administration is building a network of security partnerships to push back against Chinese aggression and maintain a free and open regional order, and India is viewed as an integral part of that."

Ms Curtis, a former National Security Council senior director for South and Central Asia from 2017 to 2021, also expects “substantial deliverables”, including a deal for the US to co-produce jet engines with India which she described as a game-changer for Indian defence production.

“The main motivations for Washington to invest in India’s defence sector and agree to co-develop and co-produce advanced defence technology, is both to wean India from its dependence on Russian military gear, and so New Delhi has the confidence and capabilities to stand up to Chinese aggression,” she added.

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