India ‘defining partner of 21st century’, key to counter China: US lawmakers urge tie reset

Washington, Dec 11 (SocialNews.XYZ) US lawmakers and senior foreign policy experts have described the United States' partnership with India as "a defining relationship of the 21st century", warning that Chinese aggression requires deeper military, economic, and technological coordination between Washington and New Delhi.

Opening a House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on South and Central Asia hearing on the US–India strategic partnership on Wednesday (local time), Chairman Congressman Bill Huizenga said the relationship "is no longer just important. It is a defining relationship of the 21st century", adding that "if America wants a free Indo-Pacific… our partnership with India is critical."

He warned that an "increasingly aggressive China threatens regional stability", citing Beijing's expanding maritime presence, military coercion along the border, and what he called an overt attempt "to encircle and control the Indian Ocean."

Witnesses told lawmakers that India has shown the "stiffest resistance" to Chinese pressure. Jeff Smith of the Heritage Foundation said India "has engaged in… stopping Chinese coercion at their border", and unlike the US, "it was able to ban TikTok essentially overnight". He added that India "has put up fierce restrictions on Chinese investments" and has become one of Washington's most consequential strategic partners.

India's role, experts testified, extends across domains -- from maritime deterrence to intelligence-sharing and emerging technologies. Smith detailed that the two countries are "tracking Chinese submarines together in the Indian Ocean", conducting joint patrols in the South China Sea, and holding mountain warfare exercises in the Himalayas.

Dhruva Jaishankar of ORF America said the partnership has grown because of "economic opportunities for both countries" and a shared concern about China's rise. He noted that China's military mobilisation in 2020 "resulted in clashes in which 20 Indian military personnel lost their lives", while Beijing's network of ports and naval assets across the Indo-Pacific "might be used to secure critical choke points".

Despite this progress, lawmakers voiced concern that recent US trade actions -- including steep tariffs -- were destabilising ties. Ranking Member Sydney Kamlager-Dove sharply criticised the administration's approach, saying Trump "will be the American President that lost India", and warning that coercive trade measures "are doing real and lasting damage" to strategic trust.

"The tariff rate on India is currently higher than the tariff rate on China," she said, adding that Washington should not "drive strategic partners into the arms of our adversaries."

India's concerns extend to Washington's renewed engagement with Pakistan's military leadership. Jaishankar said India's view, shaped by "a long and well-documented history" of Pakistan using terrorist proxies, is that "third-party mediation has often contributed to Pakistan's adventurism."

Witnesses and lawmakers agreed the partnership remains vital. In a series of rapid-fire questions, the ranking member asked whether India is critical to countering China's influence, whether India's role in the Quad enhances a free and open Indo-Pacific, and whether a strong partnership improves deterrence. All three witnesses responded: "Yes."

Sameer Lalwani of the German Marshall Fund said India can "shoulder more day-to-day security responsibilities in the Indian Ocean", complicate Chinese military planning, and provide industrial capacity in crises. But he cautioned that a "ay-do gap" in implementing major initiatives, including defence co-production, risks slowing momentum.

Huizenga said maritime security will remain central. India's location along key sea lines, he said, means Chinese control anywhere in the region "could have dangerous leverage over the global economy." Smith urged expanded coordination around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, calling it "an extremely valuable asset" for monitoring naval traffic entering the Indian Ocean.

In their assessments, experts argued that despite recent friction, the logic of deeper engagement is overwhelming. Smith warned that it would be "strategic malpractice of the highest order to discard the quarter-century dividend of trust", while Jaishankar said both sides can still achieve "$500 billion in trade by 2030," expanded cooperation on AI and defence, and new corridors linking the Middle East and Europe.

India–US defence ties have accelerated over the past decade, backed by foundational military agreements and by Quad cooperation with Japan and Australia. China's assertive posture -- from the South China Sea to the Line of Actual Control -- has pushed the United States and India to coordinate more closely across maritime security, technology, and supply chain resilience.

Bilateral trade now exceeds $200 billion annually, and both nations see each other as central to balancing China's influence in the Indo-Pacific. Despite political turbulence, analysts expect security and technology cooperation to deepen in 2026 and beyond.

Source: IANS