Bid(en)-ing farewell to Trump Administration — The India way

Indo-US ties remain at the helm of India’s bilateral engagement in the international sphere. This partnership is deep rooted and reflected in people-to-people ties,common values of democracy and the rule of law. Consequently, paving way for a stronger engagement throughout the years irrespective of the party or leader in the Oval Office.

Considering the fullness of time,Democrats from Kennedy to Obama stood on a similar pedestal as the Republicans from Eisenhower to Trump on matters related to India.

For Instance, Republicans mostly viewed India only in terms of how it advances the interests of American businesses. However, presidencies of Eisenhower (1953–61) and Bush (2000–08) acknowledged India’s rising grandeur among the global players aligned with America’s national interest.While on the contrary,Democrat leaders have always considered India as one of its natural allies and a strategic comrade of choice. Likewise, Joe Biden-Kamala Harris duo is expected to follow the footsteps of their predecessors in advancing their national interest aligned with the benefits of its allies’ grandeur.

As with Biden’s word to “return to normalcy” in the domestic sphere, his foreign policy agenda casts a similar shadow by “looking at an across-the-board restoration project”. From India’s standpoint, Biden’s robust knowledge and expertise is unmatched to his 45 predecessors at the genesis of their presidential tenure. The president-elect’s affiliation with New Delhi goes back in time, initially as the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and then as vice president during Obama’s Presidency. Even his role as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during the span of the US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement in 2008, and also as the co-sponsor of legislation (Naval Vessels Transfer Act of 2005) led to India’s accretion of the first US-built warship.

Hence, Biden’s familiarity with the Washington-New Delhi relationship could give some substantive leverage in hindsight.

A continuum in Indo-US ties

The 21st century has witnessed a defining partnership between India and US which is multifaceted in its very nature , characterising a confluence of military gateways, economic growth, cyber space, and healthcare.

The Policy document surfaced on Biden’s Campaign website dwelled on his ideas for a flourishing US-India partnership. There is an anticipated continuum in various spheres of their Union. Right from our global battle against climate change, health and co-operation on terrorism to US backing India for becoming the permanent member of the UN security council as well as in trade and commerce. Hence, it is safe to say that New Delhi is most likely to find the democratic approach more appealing than Trump’s free spirit approach that undermined long-term partnerships.

Let us have a look at the key areas which can have a potential impact owing to Biden’s Presidency.

1. India’s Strategic Sphere

The aggressive melee between Sino-Indian troops remains to be one of the most pressing issues of 2020 for New Delhi. Although speculations around Chinese condescending attitude hints towards Indo-American strategic goals in Asia and the indo-Pacific sphere. The real reason for this transgression is still uncertain.

Consequently, Sino-American ties possess far reaching consequences for New Delhi. Despite Trump’s reservations and erratic policies for China, the partnership between these giants is undeniable which is evident with its trade estimate of $634 billion last year. Furthermore, Trump’s “complete decoupling from China” was a reasonable policy but launched at an unreasonable time. With the election of Biden-Kamala, the duo might strive for a less aggressive and more structured approach. This is primarily in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic which has triggered nations to protect their supply chains with no scope of over dependence on any particular country. In spite of the constant clash between Beijing and Washington D.C , Biden realizes the necessity of Chinese Cooperation in stepping matters of climate change, terrorism, trade rules. However the question is whether this rift between USA-China would bring benefit to India or not?

Along with this, it is important to look into Washington’s decision to exit from the six-nation nuclear deal under Donald Trump. The imposition of oil sanctions by the US on Iran affected India’s energy security coupled with it’s strategic networking project of Chabahar port. Biden’s positive attitude concerning Iran with gradual withdrawals would set the tone for India’s energy stability which could greatly benefit from cheap Iranian oil imports again and also augment the completion of Chabahar port.

2. Trade and Commerce

As per a report by, Wall Street Journal the biggest divergence between the Trump and Biden administrations would be on trade relations with its allies.

India tops the list of America’s trading partners with bilateral trade estimating around $88.75 billion in 2019–20, as per the data by Government of India. Whereas, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) (which is calculated differently), estimated a total trade in goods and services for the year 2019 around $146 billion. However, President Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, were not able to seal a deal on trade, despite their apparent closeness.

Furthermore, In response to India’s removal from countries eligible for the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) list ,New Delhi retaliated by importing tariffs on steel and aluminium imposed by US industry in the year 2018. At the recent ‘2+2’ ministerial dialogue on October 30, a joint statement pointed out the “ongoing discussions” between India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry on market access, removal of trade barriers and ease of doing business.

Under the Biden administration, India’s main lookout would be for the restoration of GSP benefits, along with the withdrawal of tariffs on aluminium and steel. However, Biden is not exactly a Free trader and would prioritise the US markets. Hence, there is lack of clarity as to how India will benefit considering the prevailing circumstances

3. Immigration

Suspension of H-1B visas alongside other types of foreign work visas till 2020 was among the key patrons of Trump’s maverick foreign policy. India’s IT sector is often portrayed as the flagbearer of being the abuser of the US’s H-1B visa policy bore the consequences. For instance the rejection rate, according to statistics released by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, estimated a record level high due to twists by the Trump administration. According to the USCIS, 24% of first-time H-1B applications were denied in Q3 2019 as compared to 6% in 2015.

Whereas,Biden’s policy document on his campaign website, promised to expand the number of high-skilled visas and eliminate the country-based quotas “which create unacceptably long backlogs” The policy document also highlighted the exemption of recent graduates of PhD programmes from any cap in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) courses in the US who are prospective contributors to the world economy.

Further,“Biden believes that foreign graduates of a US doctoral program should be given a green card with their degree and that losing these highly trained workers to foreign economies is a disservice to our own economic competitiveness,” as posted on the campaign website.

Hence,Indian workers may breathe a sigh of relief with reference to the mobility irritant under the Biden administration.

Climate Justice

Another lookout would be the USA’s homecoming to the Paris climate agreement which is of utmost importance in battling climate change.

When the US left the Paris Agreement, Joe Biden and his administration would join the accord again within 77 days of assuming office, as tweeted by his official account. This will help India too, to work with the US in a collective battle against climate change which seeks to reduce carbon emissions, thereby, securing a clean energy future.

However, India and other developing nations would continue to vouch for the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities as the utilization of fossil fuels would be much longer for developing nations than developed ones.

While there are spheres of concern on the domestic front for India but the presence of plenty of positive connotations would counter the negatives. Consequently, leading to a transparent bilateral engagement between the oldest and largest democracies to have an institutional basis of friendship.