When?George?W. Bush went to India on his historic trip in 2006, he repeatedly stressed America’s and India’s shared democratic credentials. This should be at the forefront of Barack Obama’s mind as he starts his visit to India on Saturday. How will he frame the two powers’ relationship? Will he present the India-US friendship as an expression of core political values – freedom to vote, speak, move and worship, and tolerance of religious and ethnic diversity – that they share? Will he present that bond as a cornerstone of a new order, especially given the absence of political freedoms in a rising China? Will he even take the momentous step of endorsing India’s bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council? He should.

During the cold war, US and India had a dialogue of the deaf. The three pillars of the relationship – security concerns, economic beliefs and political values – were misaligned. Democracy could not trump the differences in economic philosophies and security interests. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the contradictions began to disappear. India also shifted economic gear, lifting controls over business. India’s entrepreneurs have by now ushered in an economic revolution. Without Indian software, indeed, thousands of US companies would not be as internationally competitive.

Into these currents have entered two new factors, pushing the two nations closer: India’s American diaspora, and the rise of China.