India–US relations in focus at inaugural seminar of Motwani Jadeja Institute for American Studies
New Delhi: The launch of the Motwani Jadeja Institute for American Studies (MJIAS) at O P Jindal Global University has created a fresh platform for strengthening India–US ties through dialogue and research. At its inaugural seminar, themed “Resetting the US–India Ties Through Dialogue & Diplomacy”, renowned foreign policy thinker Professor (Dr.) C Raja Mohan called for “strategic patience” in navigating current challenges in the bilateral relationship.
“India needs to be firm that we’re not going to yield to demands, but remain open to negotiations. To understand what’s unfolding in the United States, we must study its history, culture, and persistent political currents,” said Dr. Raja Mohan, Distinguished Professor and Senior Fellow Designate at MJIAS. He noted that while American support was instrumental in India’s early technological and agricultural advances, ties collapsed in the 1970s before being revived in the early 2000s under successive Indian Prime Ministers.
Professor (Dr.) C Raj Kumar, President of MJIAS and Founding Vice Chancellor of JGU, emphasized that no other country shares with India such common ground in democratic values, rule of law, and belief in individual enterprise. “This relationship is not only one of the most defining of the future, but also central to shaping the destiny of humankind,” he said.
Special and keynote addresses were delivered by Ambassador Nagaraj Naidu Kakanur of the Ministry of External Affairs and Jorgan K. Andrews, Senior Foreign Service Officer, US Department of State. Both congratulated JGU and philanthropist Asha Jadeja Motwani, whose $5 million endowment established the Institute, and underlined its potential to provide intellectual ballast for long-term cooperation.
The seminar brought together parliamentarians, former ambassadors, policy experts, academics, and business leaders for panel discussions on legislative engagement, trade and investment, and diplomatic-academic collaboration. Speakers identified key irritants in the partnership, including trade and tariff disputes, US–Pakistan ties, India’s oil purchases from Russia, and the shifting dynamics of U.S.–China relations.
Despite these hurdles, there was broad consensus that India must remain resilient, diversify its markets, and sustain dialogue with Washington. Participants agreed that the US remains India’s most important strategic partner, and the relationship—though periodically tested—has the potential to be the most consequential of the 21st century. Mpost
