India-US must remain at forefront of technology: NSA Ajit Doval

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval emphasised that India and the US must remain at the forefront of technology in case the two countries need to protect and defend their value systems.

The two countries released on Monday a joint Fact Sheet following the second meeting of the US-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) in the national capital, according to an official statement.

The meeting was chaired by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and visiting US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. 

The iCET was launched by New Delhi and Washington in January 2023.While addressing the meeting organised by the iCET Industry Roundtable organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), NSA Ajit Doval highlighted the role of industry in technology and the progress of iCET since its inception."ICET has achieved more than we could imagine," he stressed.

"US and India have got to remain at the forefront of technology in case we need to protect and defend our value systems and it is part of a larger strategic interest," NSA Doval said.

He further highlighted the progress made across the defence innovation roadmap and startups and emphasized the importance of the semiconductor industry, the official statement added.Meanwhile, US NSA Jake Sullivan noted three important buckets for technology partnerships, the first being innovation, the second as production, and the third being deployment.

US NSA Sullivan highlighted the importance of innovation and emphasized the need for government support for the private sector.Sullivan underscored that the US bipartisan supports the Indian industry, adding that building the ecosystem and supply chain manufacturing is the key to production.

He further said that the core of the iCET is about the idea of India and the US being able to support each other and encourage greater collaboration in the technology ecosystem, jointly innovate and find solutions to challenges.The Initiative for Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET), launched in January 2023, represents a landmark agreement between the two countries on emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, semiconductors, biotech, and defence innovation.

The iCET is a significant development in the India-US relationship, elevating the two countries' strategic partnership to new heights.Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General of the CII said that under iCET India and the US are working on sectors such as AI, biotech, critical materials and minerals, semi-conductors and other sectors to help enable deeper engagement between the two countries.

Moreover, representatives from industries, all of whom were leaders in their respective spheres, spoke about their experiences of collaboration with each other and the ways and means by which they planned to take India-US collaboration further through government facilitation by streamlining processes and regulations wherever required, the statement added.

Banerjee further said that the CII will increase the series of industry delegations to the US beginning this month and also requested reciprocal delegations from the US to India.

Following the meeting, both NSAs assured the industry that they welcome industry communications highlighting specific issues and that due diligence will be done to resolve any barriers that hold back deeper and closer India-US ties.