US : India is seen by the as a “Highly Strategic Partner” for supply chain security and artificial intelligence; Secretary Helberg will attend the February Delhi meeting as part of a drive for closer bilateral collaboration

US : While rejecting claims that political tensions kept India from attending a recent summit in Washington, a senior U.S. official stated that the United States views India as a critical potential partner in efforts to secure global supply chains for semiconductors and artificial intelligence.

In an effort to strengthen cooperation with New Delhi on what he called “economic security matters,” US Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg said he will attend the India AI Impact Summit in February.

Helberg responded to queries over India’s absence at the Pax Silica Summit, which brought together technologically advanced economies to discuss strategy on AI infrastructure and semiconductor supply chains, in a virtual interview with media on Wednesday in Washington.

“I want to be clear that the conversations between the United States and India pertaining to trade arrangements are a completely separate and parallel track to our discussions on supply chain security,” Helberg said. “We are not conflating those two things.”

He emphasized that India is now involved via bilateral talks rather than the multilateral framework and was not “excluded” from the summit because of diplomatic difficulties.

The person noted that officials from both nations continue to communicate on a daily basis. “We view India as a highly strategic potential partner on supply chain security-related efforts, and we welcome the opportunity to engage with them,” he said.

The Under Secretary said that he will have the chance to set “tangible milestones” for US-India collaboration by attending the summit in Delhi in February.

Helberg said that the gathering will result in significant advancements in bilateral economic security agreements. “We are actively determining ways of actually deepening that collaboration quickly,” he said.

The December summit’s organizers see the Pax Silica effort as a major change in Washington’s approach to economic policy, putting national security above of conventional trade issues.

Rebalancing trade relations, reindustrializing America, stabilizing conflict areas economically, and protecting supply chains from vulnerabilities are the four pillars around which the framework is built.

Helberg described silicon and semiconductors as the “lifeblood” of contemporary technology, and the initiative’s main goal was to coordinate investments among allies in data centers, manufacturing facilities, and mineral refinement.

In addition to Taiwan, the European Union, Canada, and the OECD, the first summit brought together partners from Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia.

These nations, which are home to companies like Samsung, TSMC, ASML, and SK Hynix, together serve as the backbone of the world’s semiconductor supply chain.

The Pax Silica idea originated from bilateral talks between the United States and Japan, and Japan is seen as a key player in the endeavor. Despite its special diplomatic standing, Taiwan took part, demonstrating its supremacy in the production of semiconductors.

Observers point out that, in keeping with the Minerals Security Partnership model, India may eventually join the project.

Launched in 2022 to safeguard supply chains for essential minerals, the US-led agreement first moved on without India until New Delhi joined in June 2023 with countries such as the European Union, Japan, and Australia.

The MSP, which concentrates on materials like lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements, is generally seen as an attempt to challenge China’s dominance in the processing of rare earth elements, which makes up 60–70% of the world’s capacity.

Pax Silica seeks to strengthen resilience in sectors ranging from defense electronics to electric car batteries while lowering reliance on China across the technological supply chain.

The move coincides with Washington’s increased emphasis on economic security, which views supply chain weaknesses as a national survival issue rather than just a business one.