New Delhi, Feb 20: US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor on Friday underlined the importance that US President Donald Trump attaches to India, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited him to visit the country.
Addressing a joint press conference with US Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg and US President's Science and Technology Advisor Michael Kratsios, Gor said there was no formal announcement yet on the visit, but recalled that President Trump greatly enjoyed his earlier trip to India. He added that when Trump nominated him as ambassador, he had spoken about India's unmatched vibrancy, colour, history and culture, and expressed confidence that the President would return at some point.
"In terms of the President's visit, the Prime Minister invited him. I don't have any announcements for you soon. The president loved his visit to India. When he nominated me to be ambassador here, one thing he said is the vibrancy, the colour, the history and the culture that you're gonna see in India is unmatched, and so I'm sure he will be back here at some point," said Gor.
Gor also said the United States is keen to pursue initiatives where both countries can work closely together, with Pax Silica and artificial intelligence leading that effort. He said Washington wants to collaborate with Indian companies on its AI technology and capabilities, adding that this offer is being made specifically to India and not to all countries.
"We're looking for initiatives where the United States and India can work together. And Pax Silica leads at that, AI leads at that. We're coming here with a message to India that our stacks, our abilities, our AI technology is something that we want to work with Indian companies with. We're not offering that to everyone around the world. It's something that we bring specially here to this place," said Gor.
Gor welcomed India's participation in Pax Silica, saying the presence of leading companies at the event reflected the strength of the partnership and that both sides looked forward to taking it to the next level.
"We're thrilled that India joined Pax Silica... If you saw the companies that are represented here today, this is an incredible partnership for both of our nations, and we look forward to taking it to the next level," said Gor.
On how responsibilities would be shared under Pax Silica and whether it could provide an alternative front for securing critical minerals, Helberg said the initiative is not limited to government-to-government cooperation but also enables private sector partnerships.
"So in terms of shared responsibility, one of the things that makes PAX SILICA effective is that it's not just a G2G platform, it's also a platform that allows businesses to actually forge partnerships, private sector to private sector. Part of the spirit of the Trump administration is we believe in industry and we believe in markets," said Helberg.
"And so we're not trying to replicate private industry in-house, we want to help facilitate private sector partnerships that actually allow us to secure our supply chains through things like off-take agreements and the rest. The other point is instead of making... instead of using taxpayer dollars to make investments, we're looking at incentives. And so the Trump administration through deregulation, through energy abundance has put in place powerful incentives that allow the private sector to lead," he added.
Helberg further said countries that build on the American AI stack would benefit from an open, independently controlled and secure system. He added that this is why the United States is keen to share its AI capabilities with nations that prioritise AI sovereignty.
"I would say it's actually the opposite. I believe any country in the world that builds on top of the American AI stack will have the most open, independently controlled, secure stack that the world has to offer. And that's why we're so eager to share it with so many countries that are prioritising AI sovereignty," said Helberg.
India on Friday signed and joined the Pax Silica Declaration on the sidelines of the Global AI Impact Summit being held here in the national capital.
US Ambassador to India Segio Gor; Jacob Helberg, United States Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Union Minister for Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw were present during the signing of the declaration. (ANI)
