Republican Sen. Steve Daines / IANS

India, working with the United States, is the only country that can match the size and scale of China's innovation ecosystem, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines has said, calling the India-U.S. partnership important not only for the two countries but for the world.

Daines, Republican senator from Montana, made the remarks at the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) Leadership Summit in Washington, where he was honored with the USISPF Public Service Award for his work in strengthening the bilateral relationship. Sen. Mark Warner, who also received the award, could not be present in person.

"The relationship that we have between the United States and India is not only important for our two countries. I think it's important for the world," Daines said during a conversation with Raj Subramaniam, president and CEO of FedEx.

Daines said Washington needed to think more strategically about India's role as it dealt with the challenge posed by China.

"We need a high-trusted counterpoint as we think about what's going on with China," he said.

He drew a sharp distinction between his approach to India and China, saying, "When I travel to China, this phone does not go to Beijing with me. It stays on my desk in Washington, D.C. When I travel to Delhi or anywhere in India, this one is with me."

Daines said the United States could not disengage from China but had to de-risk while building trusted strategic partnerships.

"We can't disengage from China. We need to engage, we need to de-risk," he said.

"But it begs the question, so what are we gonna do proactively as we think about strategic partnerships and opportunities?"

He said India and the United States together had the talent scale needed to compete globally.

"There's only one country in the world that can match the size and scale of China's innovation ecosystem, and it's India working with the United States," Daines said.

"The only hope we have thinking about globally to compete with that, to build the scale is gonna be India plus the United States," he added.

Daines, who has traveled widely across Asia, said personal engagement was essential to building effective foreign policy.

"Nothing beats visiting and spending time with the people," he said, adding that trust remained the most important foundation of the India-U.S. relationship.

He said Washington often discussed the challenge from China but had not done enough to think through which partnerships needed to be strengthened.

"We talk a lot here in Washington about the challenge with China, but not really have thought through a strategy for, okay, what do we need to do going forward? What relationship need to strengthen here as that counterbalance," he said.

Introducing Daines before the award presentation, USISPF Chairman John Chambers praised the senator's ability to build relationships and work across political divisions.

"He has the ability to form relationships for life," Chambers said.

"He works across the aisle and brings constituents in a win-win environment," he added.

Chambers also cited Daines' visit to New Delhi, saying he had built trust with Indian leaders and U.S. officials.

"You build trust. You worked with Ambassador Gor and Ambassador Kwatra very effectively," Chambers said.

Subramaniam, who conducted the conversation, congratulated Daines on the award and noted the senator's background as a chemical engineer, former Procter & Gamble executive, entrepreneur, and lawmaker.

Daines recalled his early career in China in the 1990s with Procter & Gamble and said that experience shaped his understanding of Asia's economic rise. He said China had grown from a $500 billion economy at the time to more than $20 trillion today.

He also spoke about his diplomatic engagement in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, including efforts around a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia, saying American leadership continued to matter because "freedom works."

Daines, who has announced that he will leave the Senate, said he planned to remain engaged in global issues and in the India-U.S. relationship.

"We're not gonna retire. We're gonna repurpose and probably stay engaged in the private sector," he said.

"We're passionate about these global issues, passionate about what's going on in India," he added.

He ended on a personal note, saying an Indian doctor had saved his father's life during cancer treatment.

"It was an Indian doctor that saved my father's life," Daines said, adding that the contribution of Indian Americans to U.S. society was "not lost on me."

The USISPF Public Service Award recognizes public officials who have contributed to strengthening the India-U.S. partnership. This year's presentation to Daines highlighted his role in advancing strategic engagement with India, particularly at a time when Washington is reassessing global supply chains, technology competition, and its long-term approach to China.

Discover more at New India Abroad.