White House NSC Kirby: Modi's State Visit "Wasn't About China"

White House National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby has told reporters that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's White House state visit, "wasn't about China."

• In response to a question asking if Kirby saw India as "a counterweight to China?" Kirby says, "this state visit wasn't about China. India has challenges with China as well... and clearly the challenges presented by the PRC to both our nations were on the agenda yesterday... but this wasn't about leveraging India to be some sort of counterweight. India... have their own foreign policy and they live in a tough neighborhood."
• In response to a second question, Kirby concedes that India has a role to play in the Biden administration's overall China strategy but states the visit was not, "some sort of messaging opportunity to China."
• The NYT noted this morning that despite a large number of deliverables announced during the state visit, including trade liberalisation and defence and tech investments, "Modi made no pledges to endorse U.S. efforts to restrain China, nor to cut ties to Russia," which many journalists have suggested was the implicit subtext of the visit.