AMBASSADOR GOR: Good evening. All right. Before I give my speech, I just got a call from a special guest who’s on the line. Can you hear us, Mr. President? (Cheers.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: (Via phone) I can hear you. I love India. I love India. So I know you’re there, and I hope you make a good speech. You have to be representative of our country, Sergio. But I just want to say hello to everybody. I love the prime minister. Modi is great. He’s my friend. (Cheers.)
And I just want to say a very, very good evening to everybody. It’s morning here, it’s evening there. And I just want to say you’re great, and we’ve never been closer to India, and India can count on me 100 percent and our country. If they ever need help, they know where to call. They call right here. We’re doing well. We’re setting records. We have a record economy, a record stock market. And anything India wants, they get. And I’m a big, big fan of Prime Minister Modi. (Cheers.)
AMBASSADOR GOR: Thank you, sir. Marco Rubio is here. Any advice for our great Secretary of State?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: (Via phone) Well, Marco’s the greatest. I tell you, he’s going to be – he’s going down as the greatest secretary of state in the history of the U.S. And it’s good – well, you have some big ones there. You have – when you have Marco – Sergio, when you have Marco, you’re getting into big stuff.
AMBASSADOR GOR: It’s big.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: (Via phone) That’s very good. Well, Marco, go have a good time. I know you’re going to represent us well. And everybody enjoy your evening, and it’s an honor to talk and say hello to Prime Minister Modi, and let him know I’m a big fan.
AMBASSADOR GOR: Thank you, sir. Have a great day. Thank you. We appreciate you. Thank you.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: (Via phone) Thank you. Thank you. Thanks to everybody there. (Cheers.)
AMBASSADOR GOR: How about that? (Cheers.) All right. Ladies and gentlemen, friends, colleagues, Mr. Secretary, Minister Jaishankar: We are so glad you could all be here tonight to join us for this incredible celebration of 250 years for the United States.
Two and a half centuries ago, the United States began as an experiment in liberty and self-government. As you traveled here tonight, you may have seen what we at the embassy have dubbed our “freedom fleet”: the auto rickshaws, known as the tuk-tuks, decorated to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. This fleet is a symbol of our proud journey of democracy – a journey we are honored to share with our Indian partners.
As any of you who have ridden in an auto rickshaw know, the beauty of the journey is that you aren’t walled off in a car; you’re actually part of the world. You are part of the landscape. You are part of the environment. You see the sights, you hear the sounds, and you feel the energy of the city. Our partnership follows a similar path. We recognize that the most meaningful progress doesn’t always happen on a straight, predictable road. It happens when we have the agility to navigate new routes together, finding the direct openings that lead to real achievement.
This open path diplomacy is driven by the personal bond between President Trump and Prime Minister Modi. I hear about it every time the President and I speak. One of the first questions the President will ask is, “How is my friend the Prime Minister doing?” And that is something that is important to convey. Because this relationship is not new. It’s not a year old, it’s not two years old. It extends almost a decade. Together, they have redefined what is possibly, by moving with a shared sense of purpose and a relentless focus on the future. From George Washington to President Donald Trump, the United States remains a shining beacon for the world. President Trump and Prime Minister Modi are leaders who have championed a new vision for the partnership between our two nations – one that is transparent, one that is agile, and above all, one that is results-oriented.
Every week at the embassy, I tell my team, “What are we going to achieve this week?” Results matter. These two individuals – President Trump and Prime Minister Modi – they also recognize the immense potential of our two nations and are dedicated to finding new direct ways for us to work together. This bond is the foundation of a new era, one where we are actively delivering on the promise of our cooperation and building a future of tangible achievements.
Since I arrived in New Delhi just five months ago, we have announced an interim trade deal that hopefully in the next few weeks will get signed; India has been invited, accepted, and joined Pax Silica; and commercial diplomacy is at record-high levels. I am specifically proud that every embassy competes to bring investment into the United States, and our embassy in India came in number one in the world with $20.5 billion of new investments into the United States. (Cheers and applause.)
Tonight is not only about celebrating history. It is about looking ahead to a new era of shared success driven by the extraordinary momentum in the U.S.-India partnership.
Since I’ve arrived here, I’ve been honored to advocate for a shared future, ensuring that top decision-makers in Washington recognize the U.S.-India relationship. As you know, we have a direct line to everybody in the administration, but especially to our President. That is the partnership that opens markets, drives innovation, and creates high-quality jobs for both Americans and Indians.
America First does not mean America alone, and every week we identify opportunities that are win-win situations for both of our nations. I’m especially proud that this spring, our embassy brought a record-breaking delegation, which will continue over the weeks, months ahead as we continue to work here in India.
But today also is a very special evening here because it is somebody’s first trip to India. I want to welcome somebody who is an extraordinary individual. This is somebody who is not able to leave the White House every single day because he’s usually with the President. This is somebody’s who not just in one position, but he’s also the National Security Advisor. I want to welcome, and I want to ask everybody here to help me welcome, who I – somebody I consider a dear friend, but somebody who will go down in history as possibly the greatest secretary of state of the United States.
Please help me welcome the extraordinary Secretary Marco Rubio. (Cheers and applause.)
You got to turn that music up. Come on. (Cheers.) Louder.
SECRETARY RUBIO: Thank you. Thank you. Well, Sergio, let me just say this. I don’t – we have great ambassadors everywhere all over the world, but I don’t know anyone who’s a better event producer of all of our ambassadors from what Sergio has put on here today. (Laughter.) We’re only – we’re not even halfway through the evening. Sergio, this is a great event in honor of the 250 years of our country. And I want to thank you for not only doing a great job tonight, but Sergio and his team here at the U.S. embassy are doing a phenomenal job every single day in one of the most important relationships we have in the world. Thank you, Sergio. And thank you to our embassy team and everybody that works on it every single day. (Applause.)
I also want to thank all of our friends from the diplomatic corps – various countries – so many that are here today representing your countries. We’re honored and we’re grateful that you would be here today to recognize the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America. We’re very grateful that all of you are here. Thank you for coming. It’s an honor to share this evening with all of you. It’s a true privilege.
And obviously, I would be remiss if I did not thank both the welcome and the hospitality that we’ve gotten from everybody here in India and all of your government leaders and particularly the foreign minister, who’s become someone I’ve gotten to know very well. In fact, and I say this – maybe you’ve heard me say this before, but let me say it just one more time, and then the story gets old.
When I became Secretary of State, I was sworn in like at noon, or 11 a.m. that morning after the inauguration. I immediately went over to the State Department, and the first meeting I ever had was with – among it was with a group of the four countries known as the Quad. And one of the people that I met on that very first day, and I’ve interacted with so many times, is Foreign Minister Jaishankar. And he has been phenomenal. He is a truly wise gentleman – (applause) – an incredible – he does incredible work on behalf of your country, and someone that I have tremendous esteem and respect for. In fact, I told Sergio when he came here, I said get to know the foreign minister because he truly knows what he’s talking about in terms of global events.
Look, we’re honored to be here today to celebrate 250 years of our country. And we’re very proud of the United States of America. We’re very proud of its achievements. There’s a lot of things to be proud of about America. And the one thing I’m really proud about America is it has served as a beacon of hope not just around the world, but to individuals. My own parents were not born in the United States. My own parents came in 1956 to the United States from the island of Cuba. And they came to the one place on Earth where people like them would have a chance to truly have a better life.
Neither one of my parents were very educated. My father lost his mother when he was 12 or 13 years of age. His parents – he basically was on his own from the time he was 12 or 13, had to find his way in the world. My mother was one of seven sisters raised in rural poverty. And they were married, and they were very young when they came to the United States, and they achieved amazing things. My parents weren’t ever rich people, and they were never famous people, but they were successful people. Because not only were they able to achieve a better life, they were able to do the most important thing in the world for them, and that is to leave their children better off than themselves, to give their children every opportunity in the world to do whatever it is they desired to do. And even for them, some of their personal dreams may not be achievable, but they wanted to make sure that for their children there were no limits. They wanted to make sure of that. And we owe that to the United States of America, so we’re extraordinarily proud of our country and of its history.
By the same token, we’re also proud because we know that so much of what we’ve achieved in our history has been built in partnership with other countries around the world with which we share so much. And one of those relationships that I am so excited about going in to the 21st century, given the challenges and the opportunities of this new era, is India. It’s one of those countries that I know that we have this very valuable strategic partnership with and we share so many values and so many common interests.
And so obviously, I try to get around the world. I will try to go to other celebrations of our 250th birthday in different parts of the world, although I doubt any will have a production like this one. But I want you to know that part of my visit here is also to reinforce how important this relationship is, how exciting it is, and how many opportunities we have to do things together. If I think about all of the key issues and all of the key opportunities of the modern economy, India and the United States together are perfectly positioned, are perfectly positioned to work together on these issues to achieve a better life for the people of the United States, for the people of India, and frankly for the people of other countries working together as well.
And so as much as anything else, this visit is about reinforcing that and of course celebrating 250 years as a nation. And I want to thank every single one of you – how special it is that you would share it with us here this evening. There’s more entertainment to follow. There’s more fun to happen. I, unfortunately, will not be able to perform tonight because my contract with Sony – (laughter) – does not allow me to perform at unsanctioned events. (Applause.) But if you come to our 251st birthday, you never know. (Laughter.) But for our 250 I just can’t do it contractually.
But anyway, all kidding aside, thank you all very much. It’s an honor to be with all of you. And let me just say thank you to India for welcoming us, and may God always bless America. Thank you. (Cheers and applause.)
AMBASSADOR GOR: Thank you to a great Floridian and the greatest secretary of state in U.S. history. We are privileged this evening to hear from our distinguished guest, India’s Minister of External Affairs and a great friend of the United States, His Excellency Dr. S. Jaishankar. (Cheers and applause.)
EXTERNAL AFFAIRS MINISTER JAISHANKAR: Namaskar, and a very good evening to all of you. Secretary Marco Rubio, Ambassador Sergio Gor, friends: It’s a great pleasure to join you all at the celebration of the 250th year of the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America. Our felicitations to Secretary Rubio and to the ambassador, and through them to the Trump Administration and the American people.
The Declaration of Independence articulated ideas that shape the modern world: individual liberty, rule of law, free speech, and accountable governance. Those ideals influenced democratic movements and freedom struggles elsewhere. In our case, this resilience was natural given India’s long history as a pluralistic society with a consultative ethos. Today’s event therefore has a particular significance. It is a coming together of those for whom democracy is in their very DNA.
Friends, the beliefs underpinning the Declaration of Independence was thereafter expressed in measures for ascertaining the will of the people and creating a federal structure. Some of those experiences were taken into account by India’s constitution makers. Our affinities have only grown with more travel and with deeper technology and economic linkages.
Today our two countries approach the world with certain common attributes. We are both political democracies, we are market economies, and we are open societies. These shared traits have in recent times been strengthened by a convergence of national interests, and that is precisely what has enabled us to overcome the hesitations of history.
Our strategic partnership is expressed now in a very wide range of activities. They span trade and investment, defense and security, critical and emerging technologies, semiconductors, AI, energy, and space, to education, to health, and to culture. Our robust linkages grow as each side adds value and expands opportunities for the other.
India and the United States have a strong interest in combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. We must always be clear about zero tolerance for terrorists, and that is why our counterterrorism cooperation is so important. The people-to-people connect has also been a very special characteristic of our relationship. The Indian diaspora in the United States has contributed enormously to American society across technology, academia, medicine, entrepreneurship, and public service. It has helped build political understanding between our two nations and remains a living bridge.
Secretary Rubio, Ambassador, friends: It is widely recognized that the world is now in an era of transition. This actually makes the case for our relationship even stronger. Mutuality of benefits will certainly advance our cooperation. Both nations have a common interest in de-risking the global economy and providing the world with more choices. Our many convergences make us effective strategic partners in multiple domains.
This visit, Secretary Rubio – your first – highlights the significance of our ties in contemporary times. It focuses on the value of a strong bilateral relationship and the beneficial contribution of the Quad. There are other plurilateral platforms where India and the United States collaborate collectively, as indeed we do in multilateral organizations.
Secretary, Ambassador, friends: A year ago, Prime Minister Modi and President Trump set out a pathway for the further development of our enduring partnership. Their goal was to advance the aspirations of our people for a bright and prosperous future while also serving global good. Today’s occasion has brought together many stakeholders of that endeavor in this hall. Your visit, Mr. Secretary, and this celebration allows us to reaffirm our commitment to that vision.
So once again, on behalf of the Government and people of India, I convey our very best wishes on the 250th year of the Declaration of Independence. I thank you all. (Applause.)
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