1. The President of the United States of America, Barack Obama,
accompanied by First Lady Michelle Obama, is visiting India from 25-27
January 2015. The President of India and the Prime Minister of India
welcomed the U.S. President as the Chief Guest at India's 66th Republic
Day celebrations, the first U.S. President to grace this historic event.
2. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama assessed the
extensive bilateral strategic and global partnership between their two
countries and pledged to continue to enhance cooperation across the
spectrum of human endeavor to better their citizens’ lives and that of
the global community.
3. Noting that the multifaceted partnership between the United States
and India is rooted in shared values of democracy and strong economic
and people-to-people ties, President Obama and Prime Minister Modi
elevated the bilateral relationship through their endorsement of a new
India-U.S. Delhi Declaration of Friendship, which builds on their 30
September Vision Statement by articulating tangible principles to guide
ongoing efforts to advance mutual prosperity, a clean and healthy
environment, greater economic cooperation, regional peace, security and
stability for the larger benefit of humankind.
4. Recognizing the important role that both countries play in promoting
peace, prosperity, stability and security in the Asia-Pacific and Indian
Ocean Region, and noting that India’s ‘Act East Policy’ and the United
States’ rebalance to Asia provide opportunities for India, the United
States, and other Asia-Pacific countries to work closely to strengthen
regional ties, the Leaders announced a Joint Strategic Vision to guide
their engagement in the region.
5. The Prime Minister and the President acknowledged and expressed
satisfaction at the qualitative reinvigoration of strategic ties and the
intensity of substantive interactions since the Prime Minister's visit
to Washington in September 2014. They appreciated the focused action and
accomplishments by both sides on the decisions taken during the Summit
in September and in this regard, they welcomed:
-The 30 September 2014 signing of an implementing agreement
between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to conduct the joint NASA-ISRO
Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission.
-The convening of the Defence Policy Group and its subgroups on
28-29 October 2014 to pursue stronger and expanded bilateral defence
cooperation.
-India’s ongoing facilitation of U.S. Department of Defense
humanitarian missions in India, including a mission in October and
November 2014, to recover the remains of fallen U.S. soldiers who served
in World War II.
-The signing of the India-U.S. Statement of Guiding Principles on
Triangular Cooperation for Global Development on 3 November 2014, in
furtherance of bilateral efforts to advance sustainable development in
cooperation with partner countries around the world.
-The breakthrough between India and the United States on issues
relating to the implementation of the Bali Ministerial Decisions
regarding public stockholding for food security purposes, the WTO Trade
Facilitation Agreement, and post Bali work.
-Convening of the U.S.-India Joint Commission Meeting on Science
and Technology Cooperation in New Delhi on 17 November 2014 to review,
exchange views, and advance cooperation in diverse areas of science and
technology and foster engagement in techno-entrepreneurship and
innovation partnership for mutual benefit.
-Convening of the India-U.S. Higher Education Dialogue in New
Delhi on 17 November 2014 to further bilateral cooperation in this
field, strengthen partnerships between Indian and U.S. universities and
community colleges, improve student and scholar mobility, and promote
faculty collaboration.
-The signing of the MoU on 18 November 2014 between Indian
Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. and the Export-Import Bank of
the United States, which would make available up to $1 billion in
financing to facilitate expanded cooperation and enhance U.S. private
sector investment in Indian clean energy projects.
-Successful hosting of the bilateral India-U.S. Technology Summit
on 18-19 November 2014 with the U.S. as a partner country for the first
time.
-Convening of the High Technology Cooperation Group on 20-21
November 2014 to shape a cooperative agenda on high technology goods,
including export control-related trade in homeland security
technologies, high technology manufacturing equipment including machine
tools, defence trade, and fostering collaboration in biotechnology,
pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and health-related information
technology.
-Convening of the Smart Cities Conclave on 22 November 2014
organised by the U.S.-India Business Council in cooperation with the
Ministry of Urban Development and the Mayors and Commissioners of Ajmer
(Rajasthan), Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh) and Vishakhapatnam (Andhra
Pradesh) and the decision by the Government of India to constitute a
high-level committee for each of the three Smart Cities comprising
different departments of the Central Government, the state governments,
local governments, and representatives of the U.S. industry.
-Signing of three MoUs between the State Governments of Andhra
Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan and the U.S. Trade and Development
Agency on 25 January 2015 to develop Vishakhapatnam, Allahabad, and
Ajmer as Smart Cities with the participation of U.S. industry, in
furtherance of the commitment made by the Leaders in September 2014.
-The convening of the Trade Policy Forum at the Ministerial level
on 24-25 November 2014, in which India and the United States agreed to
work towards resolving commercial impediments in both markets, to help
realize the potential of bilateral trade in goods and services, and to
promote investment and manufacturing.
-Convening of the India-U.S. Political Military Dialogue on 4
December 2014 to exchange perspectives on bilateral strategic and
regional issues.
-Convening the sixth round of the India-U.S.-Japan trilateral
discussions on 20 December 2014 to deepen regional engagement and to
discuss ways to implement projects on the ground.
-The launch of the Infrastructure Collaboration Platform in New
Delhi on 13 January 2015 to promote enhanced market access and financing
to increase U.S. industry participation in the growth and development
of sectors that support Indian infrastructure.
-The 12-15 January 2015 expert exchange on Counter-Improvised
Explosive Device (C-IED) strategies and technologies and completion of a
Joint Statement of Intent and a work plan for a programme of bilateral
C-IED cooperation.
-The signing of a framework on and inauguration of the India-U.S.
Investment Initiative in Washington on 12-15 January 2015 to jointly
cooperate on facilitating capital market development conducive to
financing investment; creating an environment that encourages investment
in various sectors in India; and working to overcome any obstacles to
such investment.
-The convening of the Information and Communications Technology
(ICT) Working Group in Washington on 14-15 January 2015 and the 23
January signing of the Joint Declaration of Intent to advance
implementation of the Digital India programme and further bilateral
commercial ICT cooperation.
-Launching of a Knowledge Partnership in defence studies
expressing a shared desire to pursue collaborative activities between
the United States and Indian National Defence Universities.
-Signing of the Statement of Cooperation for Supervisory
Cooperation and Exchange of Supervisory Information between the Reserve
Bank of India and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Federal
Reserve System, and Office of the Comptroller of Currency (OCC).
-Convening of Indian and U.S. CEOs who are committed to deepening
bilateral economic ties by identifying current impediments to trade and
investment and working with the two government to find solutions; and
identifying emerging sectors where public-private partnership can unlock
new collaborations between our two peoples.
-The 13 January 2015 signing of the MoU between the United States
Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Ministry of Urban
Development to enable USAID to share expertise, best practices,
innovation and technologies in support of India's efforts to strengthen
water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in urban areas.
-India’s recent introduction of visa-on-arrival for U.S. citizens
and the convening of the first technical discussions to advance India’s
membership in the United States’ Global Entry Program, initiatives
aimed at easing travel between India and the United States to further
strengthen people-to-people ties.
-Cooperation on scientific research collaboration on the Indian
Monsoon Rainfall currently underway aboard the U.S. research vessel
JOIDES Resolution in the Bay of Bengal.
-The conclusion of the first of two project annexes between the
Indian Department of Atomic Energy–Department of Science and Technology
and the U.S. Department of Energy, which will enable discovery science
cooperation in particle accelerator and high energy physics.
-The 22 January signing of the MoU between the U.S. Department of
Treasury and India’s Ministry of Finance to enhance cooperation to
combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism.The Completion of
an MoU between the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare,
Department of Biotechnology, Indian Council of Medical Research, All
Indian Institute of Medical Sciences, and the U.S National Institute of
Health and National Cancer Institute.
-The 23 January signing of the Joint Declaration of Intent
between USAID and the Ministry of Human Resource Development for
technical support to the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs),
starting with IIT Gandhinagar, to strengthen research and
entrepreneurship capabilities.
-The recent finalization of the 2015 Framework for the U.S.-India
Defense Relationship, which will guide and expand the bilateral defence
and strategic partnership over the next ten years.
-The 22 January signing of the India-U.S. Research, Development,
Testing and Evaluation (RDT&E) Agreement to facilitate cooperation
in defence research and development.
-Continuing bilateral engagement on the Defence Technology and
Trade Initiative (DTTI), including the 22 January 2015 agreement in
principle to pursue co-production and co-development of four pathfinder
projects, form a working group to explore aircraft carrier technology
sharing and design, and explore possible cooperation on development of
jet engine technology.
6. Prime Minister Modi and President Obama jointly appreciated the
significant efforts undertaken by both sides in recent months to
re-energize the strategic partnership, and affirmed expanding the
substantive underpinnings of our diversified bilateral strategic
partnership including through expanded strategic consultations, stronger
defence, security, and economic cooperation.
7. President Obama also reiterated his support for Prime Minister Modi's
vision to transform India, and recognized that India's focus on its
development priorities presented substantial opportunities for forging
stronger India-U.S. economic ties and greater people-to-people contacts.
Reaffirming that India’s rise is also in the interest of the United
States, regional and global stability, and global economic growth,
President Obama reiterated the United States' readiness to partner with
India in this transformation. The two leaders pledged to translate their
commitment of "Chalein Saath Saath”: "Forward Together We Go" of
September into action through "Sanjha Prayaas; Sab Ka Vikaas": "Shared
Effort; Progress For All".
Economic Growth
8. Prime Minister Modi and President Obama expressed confidence that
continued bilateral collaboration will increase opportunities for
investment, improve bilateral trade and investment ties and lead to the
creation of jobs and prosperity in both economies. In this regard, the
Leaders agreed to continue to strengthen their broad-based partnership
for development through stronger trade, technology, manufacturing, and
investment linkages between the two countries and triangular cooperation
with partner countries, and that continued efforts to maintain labor
standards as per domestic law and agreed international norms will make
these linkages more durable. The two sides also committed to continuing
to cooperate on the finalization of the Post-Bali Work Programme in the
spirit of the Doha mandate.
9. The President and the Prime Minister affirmed their shared commitment
to facilitating increased bilateral investment flows and fostering an
open and predictable climate for investment. To this end, the Leaders
instructed their officials to assess the prospects for moving forward
with high-standard bilateral investment treaty discussions given their
respective approaches.
10. The President and the Prime Minister also welcomed the fifth annual
U.S.-India Economic and Financial Partnership Dialogue in February, in
which the countries will deepen their dialogue on macroeconomic policy,
financial sector regulation and development, infrastructure investment,
tax policy, and efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist
financing.
11. The two sides agreed to hold a discussion on the elements required
in both countries to pursue an India-U.S. Totalisation Agreement.
12. President Obama commended Prime Minister Modi’s "Jan Dhan” scheme to
prioritize financial inclusion for India’s poor. The Leaders noted
India’s intent to join the Better Than Cash Alliance.
13. The Leaders committed to explore areas of collaboration in skill
development ranging from establishing quality assurance systems for
skilling certification standards, setting up of skill development
centres, nurturing and promoting social entrepreneurship and
strengthening the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.
14. President Obama and Prime Minister Modi agreed to collaborate in the
implementation of India's ambitious Digital India programme and expand
commercial cooperation, including by encouraging investment engagement
in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector.
15. In recognition of the importance of their ongoing commercial
discussions, the two sides agreed to hold public-private discussions in
early 2015 under the aegis of the India-U.S. Commercial Dialogue for a
period of two years, until March 2016, on mutually agreed areas of
cooperation.
16. Recognizing the progress made in constructive engagement on
Intellectual Property under the last round of the India-U.S. Trade
Policy Forum held in November, 2014, the Leaders also looked forward to
enhancing engagement on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in 2015 under
the High Level Working Group on Intellectual Property, to the mutual
benefit of both the countries.
17. Acknowledging the potential for technological cooperation in the
rail sector in augmenting and optimizing India's rail infrastructure,
the Leaders agreed to facilitate U.S. Trade and Development Agency and
Indian Railways technical cooperation that will assist Indian Railways’
efforts to modify its leasing and public-private partnership frameworks
to attract private sector funding.
18. The Leaders recognized the robust public-private U.S.-India civil
aviation partnership and agreed to continue working together to identify
emerging technologies and build a larger commercial engagement agenda
through key events such as the 2015 U.S.-India Aviation Summit and
demonstration of advanced U.S. technologies.
19. Reaffirming their commitment to safety and security of civil
aviation, the United States and India will continue consultations
between the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the India
Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to ensure international
safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation
(ICAO), with the aim of restoring Category I status at the earliest
possible time.
20. Noting the importance of ongoing cooperation in higher education,
the President and Prime Minister welcomed ongoing efforts to extend a
knowledge partnership for supporting the Indian Institute of Technology
at Gandhinagar through USAID. President Obama and Prime Minister Modi
also pledged to collaborate through India's Global Initiative of
Academic Networks (GIAN), to facilitate short-term teaching and research
programs by up to 1000 visiting U.S. academics in Indian universities.
21. The Leaders emphasized the importance of strengthening international
financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund. The
President also affirmed his commitment to enhancing India's voice and
vote in international Financial Institutions and ensuring that resources
are made available and used creatively through multilateral development
banks for infrastructure financing. Prime Minister Modi appreciated the
efforts of the U.S. Treasury for cooperating with the Ministry of
Finance on the Task Force on Resolution Corporation set up in pursuance
of the recommendations of the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms
Commission.
High Technology, Space and Health Cooperation
22. Prime Minister Modi and President Obama reaffirmed their commitment
to ensure that partnerships in science, technology and innovation are a
crucial component of the overall bilateral engagement in the 21st
century. They also reaffirmed their support for the role that science,
technology and innovation partnerships can play in addressing pressing
challenges in areas such as food, water, energy, climate, and health and
developing innovative solutions that are affordable, accessible and
adaptable, meet the needs of the people of the two countries and benefit
the global community. To this end, the Leaders agreed to continue to
develop cooperative efforts in many areas of science, technology, and
innovation, including studying the impacts of water, air pollution,
sanitation and hygiene on human health and well-being.
23. The Leaders also agreed to continue U.S.-India collaboration in
hydrology and water studies and monsoon modelling and noted the need to
expeditiously work towards launching an Indo-U.S. Climate Fellowship to
facilitate human capacity building. The Prime Minister and the President
also reaffirmed the importance of ongoing efforts to strengthen women's
participation in science, technology, engineering, and math through
networking and mentoring programs.
24. The President and the Prime Minister welcome efforts, under the
bilateral High Technology Cooperation Group, to seek timely resolution
of the challenges to trade in High Technology goods, including the U.S.
licensing requirements for trade in certain dual use items.
25. The Leaders reaffirmed the importance of providing transparent and
predictable policy environments for fostering innovation. Both countries
reiterated their interest in sharing information and best practices on
IPR issues, and reaffirmed their commitment to stakeholders’
consultations on policy matters concerning intellectual property
protection.
26. President Obama and Prime Minister Modi agreed to further promote
cooperative and commercial relations between India and the United States
in the field of space. The leaders noted the on-going interactions
between their space agencies, including towards realizing a dual
frequency radar imaging satellite for Earth Sciences, and exploring
possibilities for cooperation in studying Mars.
27. The Leaders took note of ongoing U.S.-India space cooperation,
including the first face-to-face meeting of the ISRO-NASA Mars Working
Group from 29-31 January 2015 in Bangalore, in which the two sides will
consider opportunities for enhanced cooperation in Mars exploration,
including potential coordinated observations and analysis between ISRO’s
Mars Orbiter Mission and NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN
mission (MAVEN). The Prime Minister and the President also welcomed
continued progress toward enhanced space cooperation via the U.S.-India
Civil Space Joint Working Group, which will meet later this year in
India.
28. Under the umbrella of an implementing agreement between the U.S.
Department of Energy and the Department of Atomic Energy of India, the
Leaders welcomed expanded collaboration in basic physics research, and
accelerator research and development.
29. The Leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the Global Health
Security Agenda (GHSA) and announced specific actions at home and abroad
to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, including a CDC-Ministry
of Health Ebola and GHSA preparedness training, expansion of the India
Epidemic Intelligence Service, and development of a roadmap to achieve
the objectives of the GHSA within three years.
30. The Leaders also committed to multi-sectoral actions countering the
emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and cooperation
in training of health workers in preparedness for infectious disease
threats. The Leaders agreed to focus science and technology partnerships
on countering antibiotic resistant bacteria and promoting the
availability, efficacy and quality of therapeutics.
31. The Leaders welcomed further progress in promoting bilateral
cooperation on cancer research, prevention, control, and management and
agreed to continue to strengthen the engagement between the CDC and
India’s National Centre for Disease Control.
32. The President and Prime Minister also welcomed the upcoming
completion of an Environmental Health, Occupational Health and Injury
Prevention and Control MoU between the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention and the Indian Council for Medical Research to further
collaborative efforts to improve the health and welfare of both
countries’ citizens.
33. The Prime Minister and the President also agreed to expand the
India-U.S. Health Initiative into a Healthcare Dialogue with relevant
stakeholders to further strengthen bilateral collaboration in health
sectors including through capacity building initiatives and by exploring
new areas, including affordable healthcare, cost saving mechanisms,
distribution barriers, patent quality, health services information
technology, and complementary and traditional medicine. The President
and the Prime Minister pledged to encourage dialogue between the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services and its Indian counterparts on
traditional medicine. The Leaders also pledged to strengthen
collaboration, dialogue, and cooperation between the regulatory
authorities of the two countries to ensure safety, efficacy, and quality
of pharmaceuticals, including generic medicines.
34. The Leaders also agreed to accelerate joint leadership of the global
Call to Action to end preventable deaths among mothers and children
through a third meeting of the 24 participating countries in India in
June 2015. As host, India will showcase the power of new partnerships,
innovations and systems to more effectively deliver life-saving
interventions. They also lauded the highly successful collaboration on a
locally produced vaccine against rotavirus which will save the lives of
an estimated 80,000 children each year in India alone, and pledged to
strengthen the cooperation in health research and capacity building
through a new phase of the India-U.S. Vaccine Action Programme.
Defence and Homeland Security Cooperation
35. Prime Minister Modi and President Obama welcomed the efforts made by
both sides to expand bilateral defence cooperation in areas of mutual
interest and reaffirmed their commitment to continue to work towards
deepening the bilateral defence relationship. The Leaders acknowledged
bilateral military ties as the foundation of the defense relationship
and encouraged their respective militaries to pursue additional
opportunities for engagement through exercises, military personnel
exchanges, and defense dialogues.
36. The Leaders also acknowledged the need for the two-way defence
engagement to include technology cooperation and collaboration,
co-production and co-development. To this end, the President and the
Prime Minister emphasized the ongoing importance of the Defence
Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) in developing new areas of
technology cooperation in the defence sector including through
co-development and co-production and the Prime Minister welcomed the
U.S. Defense Department’s establishment of a dedicated rapid reaction
team focused exclusively on advancing DTTI. The Leaders expressed
confidence that continued DTTI collaboration will yield additional joint
projects in the near future.
37. The President also welcomed the Prime Minister's initiatives to
liberalize the Foreign Direct Investment Policy regime in the defence
sector and the Leaders agreed to cooperate on India's efforts to
establish a defence industrial base in India, including through
initiatives like 'Make in India.'
38. Prime Minister Modi and President Obama expressed satisfaction over
the efforts made by both countries to deepen cooperation in the field of
maritime security, as reflected in the 2015 Framework for the
U.S.-India Defense Relationship. To this end, they agreed that the
navies of both sides would continue discussions to identify specific
areas for expanding maritime cooperation. They also reiterated their
commitment to upgrading their bilateral naval exercise MALABAR.
39. The two sides also noted the growing cooperation between their law
enforcement agencies, particularly in the areas of extradition and
mutual legal assistance, to counter transnational criminal threats such
as terrorism, narcotics, trafficking, financial and economic fraud,
cybercrime, and transnational organized crime and pledged to enhance
such cooperation further. The President and the Prime Minister also
noted the serious risks to national and economic security from malicious
cyber activity and agreed to cooperate on enhancing operational sharing
of cyber threat information, examining how international law applies in
cyberspace, and working together to build agreement on norms of
responsible state behavior.
40. The Leaders committed to undertake efforts to make the U.S.-India
partnership a defining counterterrorism relationship for the 21st
Century by deepening collaboration to combat the full spectrum of
terrorist threats and keep their respective homelands and citizens safe
from attacks. The Leaders reiterated their strong condemnation of
terrorism in all its forms and manifestations with ‘zero tolerance’ and
reaffirmed their deep concern over the continued threat posed by
transnational terrorism including by groups like Al Qaida and the ISIL,
and called for eliminating terrorist safe havens and infrastructure,
disrupting terrorist networks and their financing, and stopping
cross-border movement of terrorists.
41. The Leaders reaffirmed the need for joint and concerted efforts to
disrupt entities such as Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, D Company
and the Haqqani Network, and agreed to continue ongoing efforts through
the Homeland Security Dialogue as well as the next round of the
U.S.-India Joint Working Group on Counter Terrorism in late 2015 to
develop actionable elements of bilateral engagement. The two sides noted
the recent U.S. sanctions against three D Company affiliates. The
President and the Prime Minister further agreed to continue to work
toward an agreement to share information on known and suspected
terrorists. They also agreed to enter discussions to deepen
collaboration on UN terrorist designations, and reiterated their call
for Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of the November 2008 terrorist
attack in Mumbai to justice.
42. The President and the Prime Minister also noted the positive
cooperative engagement between the Indian and the U.S. authorities with a
view to working together to counter the threat of IEDs and to develop
counterterrorism best practices.
Energy and Climate Change
43. Noting that the Contact Group set up in September 2014 to advance
implementation of bilateral civil nuclear cooperation has met three
times in December and January, the Leaders welcomed the understandings
reached on the issues of civil nuclear liability and administrative
arrangements for civil nuclear cooperation, and looked forward to
U.S.-built nuclear reactors contributing to India’s energy security at
the earliest.
Clean Energy Goal and Cooperation
44. President Obama and Prime Minister Modi emphasized the critical
importance of expanding clean energy research, development,
manufacturing and deployment, which increases energy access and reduces
greenhouse gas emissions. The leaders announced actions to advance
India's transition to low carbon economy. India intends to increase the
share of use of renewable in electricity generation consistent with its
intended goal to increase India's solar target to 100 gigawatts by 2022.
The United States intends to support India's goal by enhancing
cooperation on clean energy and climate change, to include:
i. Expanding Partnership to Advance Clean Energy Research (PACE-R): A
renewed commitment to PACE-R, including extending funding for three
existing research tracks of solar energy, building energy efficiency,
and biofuels for an additional five years and launching a new track on
smart grid and grid storage.
ii. Expanding Partnership to Advance Clean Energy Deployment (PACE-D):
Both the countries intended to expand our current Partnership to Advance
Clean Energy Deployment (PACE-D) through increased bilateral
engagements and further joint initiatives to expand cooperation in
support of India’s ambitious targets in renewable energy.
iii. Accelerating Clean Energy Finance: Prime Minister Modi emphasized
India's ongoing efforts to create a market environment that will promote
trade and investment in this sector. President Obama welcomed India's
ambitious solar energy goals and encouraged India to continue its
efforts to increase trade and private investment in this sector.
President Obama conveyed the potential availability of U.S. Government
official financing in this area, consistent with its policies, to
support private sector involvement for those entities in contributing to
India’s clean energy requirements.
iv. Launching Air Quality Cooperation: Implementing EPA’s AIR
Now-International Program and megacities partnerships, focused on
disseminating information to help the urban dwellers to reduce their
exposure to harmful levels of air pollution, and enable urban policy
planners to implement corrective strategies for improving Ambient Air
Quality in the cities keeping in view health and climate change
co-benefits of these strategies.
v. Initiating Climate Resilience Tool Development: Jointly undertaking a
partnership on climate resilience that will work to downscale
international climate models for the Indian sub-continent to much higher
resolution than currently available, assess climate risks at the
sub-national level, work with local technical institutes on capacity
building, and engage local decision-makers in the process of addressing
climate information needs and informing planning and climate resilient
sustainable development, including for India’s State Action Plans.
vi. Demonstrating Clean Energy and Climate Initiatives on the Ground:
Additional pilot programs and other collaborative projects in the areas
of space cooling, super-efficient appliances, renewable energy storage,
and smart grids.
vii. Concluding MOU on Energy Security, Clean Energy and Climate Change:
Both countries concluded negotiations on a five year MOU to carry this
work forward, to be signed as early as possible at a mutually agreed
upon date.
Climate Change
45. The United States of America and the Republic of India recognize
that global climate change is a profound threat to humanity and to the
imperatives of sustainable development, growth and the eradication of
poverty. President Obama and Prime Minister Modi share a deep concern
regarding the climate challenge and understand that meeting it will
require concerted action by their countries and the international
community. They stressed the importance of enhancing their bilateral
cooperation on adaptation measures, as well as joint research and
development and technology innovation, adoption and diffusion for clean
energy and efficiency solutions that will help achieve the goals of
transitioning to a climate resilient and low carbon economy. They also
stressed the importance of working together and with other countries to
conclude an ambitious climate agreement in Paris in 2015. To this end,
they plan to cooperate closely over the next year to achieve a
successful agreement in Paris. The President and Prime Minister
reaffirmed their prior understanding from September 2014 concerning the
phase down of HFCs and agreed to cooperate on making concrete progress
in the Montreal Protocol this year.
Global Issues and Regional Consultations
46. The Leaders agreed to expand their efforts to assist other
developing countries and address global development challenges for the
benefit of the wider region and the world and they lauded ongoing
triangular assistance, which may involve U.S.-India collaboration to
address development challenges in third countries in areas including
health, energy, food security, disaster management, and women’s
empowerment. The two sides noted that this collaboration, which is
active with Afghanistan, East and West Africa, may be expanded to
additional third countries.
47. Further underscoring the importance of implementing infrastructure
projects to enhance connectivity and enable freer flow of commerce and
energy in the region, the Leaders agreed to develop additional areas in
which both sides could work together, including on India's initiatives
to enhance its connectivity with the South and South East Asian region.
The President and the Prime Minister also stressed the importance of the
economic and transport connectivity between Central and South Asia and
the need to promote a secure, stable, and prosperous Afghanistan as part
of a secure, stable, and prosperous region. Reaffirming the importance
of their strategic partnerships with Afghanistan, the Leaders asserted
the importance of a sustainable, inclusive, sovereign, and democratic
political order in Afghanistan and they agreed to convene further
high-level consultations on Afghanistan in the near future.
48. The President and the Prime Minister also welcomed the role of the
leaders- led East Asia Summit (EAS) process in promoting open, balanced
and inclusive security architecture in the region. Noting the
discussions in the sixth round of the India-US-Japan Trilateral
Dialogue, the President and the Prime Minister underlined the importance
of the cooperation between the three countries through identification
of projects of common interest and their early implementation, and they
decided to explore holding the dialogue among their Foreign Ministers.
49. The President and Prime Minister pledged to strengthen their efforts
to forge a partnership to lead global efforts for non-proliferation of
WMDs, to reduce the salience of nuclear weapons in international
affairs, and to promote universal, verifiable and non-discriminatory
global nuclear disarmament. They supported negotiations on a fissile
material cut-off Treaty on the basis of the Shannon Mandate in the
Conference on Disarmament.
50. As active participants in the Nuclear Security Summit process, the
United States and India welcomed progress towards reducing the risk of
terrorists acquiring nuclear weapons or related materials, and noted
their shared commitment to improving nuclear security nationally and
globally. The Prime Minister welcomed the hosting of the 2016 Nuclear
Security Summit by the United States. President Obama and Prime Minister
Modi also welcomed the recent convening of the first bilateral nuclear
security best practices exchange, under the auspices of the Global
Center for Nuclear Energy Partnership, as an example of their
cooperation on nuclear security.
51. In a further effort to strengthen global nonproliferation and export
control regimes, the President and the Prime Minister committed to
continue to work towards India’s phased entry into the Nuclear Suppliers
Group (NSG), the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the
Wassenaar Arrangement, and the Australia Group. The President reaffirmed
the United States’ position that India meets MTCR requirements and is
ready for NSG membership and that it supports India’s early application
and eventual membership in all four regimes.
52. The Leaders expressed concern over the Democratic People’s Republic
of Korea’s (DPRK) nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, including
its uranium enrichment activity. They urged the DPRK to take concrete
steps toward denuclearization, as well as to comply fully with its
international obligations, including relevant UN Security Council
Resolutions, and to fulfill its commitments under the 2005 Joint
Statement of the Six-Party talks.
53. The Leaders welcomed recent progress and noted the criticality of
Iran taking steps to verifiably assure the international community of
the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear programme, and agreed
that this is an historic opportunity for Iran to resolve outstanding
concerns related to its nuclear programme.
54. Highlighting the United States' and India’s shared democratic values
and recognizing the important role of women in their societies, the
Leaders looked forward to reconvening the Women Empowerment Dialogue as
early as possible and reasserted their zero tolerance for violence
against women. The Leaders also looked forward to the reconvening of the
Global Issues Forum.
55. The President and the Prime Minister also reaffirmed their
commitment to consult closely on global crises, including in Iraq and
Syria. The Leaders agreed to exchange information on individuals
returning from these conflict zones and to continue to cooperate in
protecting and responding to the needs of civilians caught up in these
conflicts.
56. President Obama reaffirmed his support for a reformed UN Security
Council with India as a permanent member, and both leaders committed to
ensuring that the Security Council continues to play an effective role
in maintaining international peace and security as envisioned in the
United Nations Charter. They also committed to accelerate their
peacekeeping capacity-building efforts in third countries.
57. Both sides also acknowledged that the Internet was a central element
of the information society and a powerful enabler of global economic
and social progress. Both sides also noted that the growth of the
Internet in the coming decade would be from developing countries, of
which India would be a significant contributor, especially in the
context of its "Digital India" programme.
58. The Leaders recognized that a digital divide persists between and
within countries in terms of the availability, affordability and use of
information and communications technologies, and they stressed the need
to continue to bridge that divide, to ensure that the benefits of new
technologies, especially information and communications technologies for
development, are available to all people, including the poorest of the
poor.
59. President Obama thanked Prime Minister Modi and the people of India
for the extraordinary hospitality extended to him on his second
presidential visit to India, and he congratulated the nation on the
celebration of its 66th Republic Day. The Leaders reflected proudly on
recent achievements and looked forward to continuing to work together to
build a U.S.-India partnership that is transformative for their two
peoples and for the world.
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