NEW DELHI: US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s visit to China in the last few days has enabled both sides to agree to bring down the temperature. There is even the prospect of a summit level meeting of President Biden and Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC meeting later this year, says Manoj Kewalramani, head of Indo-Pacific research at the Takshashila Institution. Speaking on The Gist, Kewalramani however believes that the trajectory of US-China ties will remain on its present adversarial course. China sees the US as trying to contain it and limit its growth economically and technologically. It wants the US to acknowledge its peer status. But the US clearly sees China as the main challenge to its supremacy, and so the sanctions and other strictures remain. India has much to gain from this adversarial relationship, argues Kewalramani. While India-US ties have seen steady growth over the last two decades across administrations, which means Washington sees advantage in India’s rise, the China challenge also gives reason to boost India. It explains US readiness to transfer jet engine technology to India, the sale of sophisticated UAVs, the discussions on semiconductors, AI, quantum computing and space. Tune in for more in this conversation with Manoj Kewalramani.
