US Second Lady Usha Vance defined the relationship between India and the United States as profoundly "personal" to her.
She confirmed that the present moment is a "great opportunity" for promoting the relations of the two nations, whose relationship has not always been stable.
While chatting fireside at the eighth US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) Leadership Summit, Vance revealed, "It is a very personal relationship because I have family members who are in India, and I have many family members here in the United States, and I did grow up visiting India and visiting those family members."
She continued, "So that's always been a relationship that I've personally thought of as very important," at an event that brought together prominent leaders in government, business, and community from both nations.
When quizzed on her perspective about the future of India-US relations, Vance replied, "This is a moment of great possibility. And I believe if my husband were present, he'd say the same.
She went on to explain, "Clearly, the United States and India - the relationship has ebbed and flowed sometimes.but today, I believe, over the next four years and in the future, the fact that there is this established Indian-American community here, and so many individuals in India who understand the country and understand the people who are here achieving great things, having great opportunities.
The conversation was led by John Chambers, chairman of USISPF and founder and CEO of JC2 Ventures.
Vance also shared thoughts on a recent India trip with the Second Family — Vice President J D Vance, herself, and their three young children. She remembered, "I was just amazed at the amount of people who came up and told me how much they adored our nation, how they went to visit family, that they came just to visit for fun, that they were looking for close relations down the road. And I believe these individual connections really do have something to do with it."
At the summit, IBM Chairman Arvind Krishna, Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla, and Hitachi Executive Chairman Toshiaki Higashihara were presented with the 2025 Global Leadership Awards by the USISPF for their "outstanding contributions in strengthening the US-India-Japan economic partnership."
Interestingly, this is the first time business leaders from the QUAD countries — Australia, India, Japan, and the US — have been honored at the USISPF summit.
USISPF is an independent, non-profit organization that is committed to developing and strengthening the friendship between India and the United States of America.
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