G20 Summit in Delhi: Modi, Biden Welcome Progress on GE Jet Engines, Armed Drones Deals

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G20 Summit: In the meeting, both sides also recommitted to advancing India’s emergence as a hub for the maintenance and repair of forward-deployed U.S. Navy assets and other aircraft and vessels

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden discussed a wide range of issues and measures to deepen the bilateral relationship between New Delhi and Washington DC during their meeting at the sidelines of the G 20 Summit in the national capital.

G-20 in India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit, in Delhi pic.twitter.com/0CKItB2YTt— ANI (@ANI) September 8, 2023

The two global leaders welcomed the completion of the Congressional Notification process on 29 August 2023 and the commencement of negotiations for a commercial agreement between GE Aerospace and Hindustan Aeronautical Limited (HAL) to manufacture GE F-414 jet engines in India and recommitted to work collaboratively and expeditiously to support the advancement of this unprecedented co-production and technology transfer proposal.

President Biden also welcomed the issuance of a Letter of Request from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of India to procure 31 General Atomics MQ-9B (16 Sky Guardian and 15 Sea Guardian) remotely piloted aircraft and their associated equipment, which will enhance the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities of India’s armed forces across all domains, a statement by the White House said.

In the meeting, both sides recommitted to advancing India’s emergence as a hub for the maintenance and repair of forward-deployed U.S. Navy assets and other aircraft and vessels.

The leaders also welcomed further commitments from the US industry to invest more in India’s maintenance, repair, and overhaul capabilities and facilities for aircraft.

Earlier this year, during his maiden visit to the US, PM Modi had invited American chip maker Micron Technology to boost semiconductor manufacturing in India. He also invited Applied Materials to India for the development of process technology and advanced packaging capabilities.

The G20 Summit, hosted by India is set to kick start on Saturday. Top world leaders including US President Joe Biden, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina, and Japan’s Fumio Kishida have landed in the country for the mega event.