00:00It's an honor to talk and say hello to you. I'm Minister Moni, and let him know I'm a big
00:04fan.
00:05Thank you, sir. Have a great day. Thank you. We appreciate you.
00:08Thank you. Thank you. How about that?
00:14All right, ladies and gentlemen, friends, colleagues, Mr. Secretary, Minister Jay Shaker,
00:21we are so glad you could all be here tonight to join us for this incredible celebration
00:27of 250 years for the United States. Two and a half centuries ago, the United States began
00:35as an experiment in liberty and self-government. As you travel here tonight, you may have seen
00:42what we at the embassy have dubbed our Freedom Fleet, the otter rickshaws, known as the tuk-tukes,
00:48decorated to celebrate America's 250th birthday. This fleet is a symbol of our proud journey of
00:56democracy, a journey we are honored to share with our Indian partners. As any of you who have
01:03ridden in an otter rickshaw know, the beauty of the journey is that you aren't welled off
01:08in a car. You're actually part of the world. You're part of the landscape. You are part
01:14of the environment. You see the sights. You hear the sounds. And you feel the energy of
01:20the city. Our partnership follows a similar path. We recognize that the most meaningful
01:26progress is a straight, predictable road. It happens when we have the agility to navigate
01:35the routes together, finding the direct openings that lead to real achievement. This open path
01:42diplomacy is driven by the personal bond between President Trump and Prime Minister Modi. I hear
01:50about it every time the President and I speak. One of the first questions the President will
01:55ask is, how is my friend the Prime Minister doing? And that is something that is important
02:01to convey. Because this relationship is not new. It's not a year old. It's not two years old.
02:06It stems almost a decade. Together, they have redefined what is possibly by moving with a shared
02:13sense of purpose and a relentless focus on the future. From George Washington to President
02:20Donald Trump, the United States remains a shiny beacon for the world. President Trump and Prime
02:27Prime Minister Modi are leaders who have championed a new vision for the partnership between our
02:35two nations. One that is transparent, one that is agile, and above all, one that is results-oriented.
02:43Every week at the embassy, I tell my team, what are we going to achieve this week? Will results
02:49matter? These two individuals, President Trump, Prime Minister Modi, they also recognize the immense
02:55potential of our two nations and are dedicated to finding new, direct ways for us to work
03:01together. This bond is the foundation of a new era, one where we are actively delivering
03:08on the promise of our cooperation and building a future of tangible achievements. Since I arrived
03:15in New Delhi just five months ago, we have announced an interim trade deal that hopefully in the next few
03:21weeks will get signed. India has been invited, accepted, and joined Pax Silica. And commercial
03:28diplomacy is at record high levels. I am specifically proud that every embassy competes to bring investment
03:34into the United States. And our embassy in India came in number one in the world with 20 and a
03:40half
03:40billion dollars of new investments into the United States. Tonight is not only about celebrating history, it is about
03:50looking ahead to a new era of shared success driven by the extraordinary momentum in the U.S.-India partnership.
03:59Since I've arrived here, I've been honored to advocate for a shared future, ensuring that top decision makers
04:05in Washington recognize the U.S.-India relationship. As you know, we have a direct line to everybody in the
04:14administration, but especially to our president. That is the partnership that opens markets, drives
04:20innovation, and creates high quality jobs for both Americans and Indians. America first does not mean
04:28America alone. And every week we identify opportunities that are win-win situations for both of our nations.
04:37I'm especially proud that this spring our embassy brought a record-breaking delegation, which will continue
04:45over the weeks, months ahead as we continue our work here in India. But today also is a very special
04:54evening
04:54here because it is somebody's first trip to India. I want to welcome somebody who's an extraordinary
05:02individual. This is somebody who is not able to leave the White House every single day because he's
05:08usually with the president. This is somebody who's not just in one position, but he's also the national security
05:14advisor. I want to welcome and I want to ask everybody here to help me welcome somebody I consider a
05:23dear
05:23friend, but somebody who will go down in history as possibly the greatest Secretary of State of the United States.
05:31Please help me welcome the extraordinary Secretary Marco Rubio.
05:57Thank you. Well, Sergio, let me just say this. I don't, we have great ambassadors everywhere all over the world,
06:02but I don't know anyone who's a better event producer of all of our ambassadors.
06:06And what Sergio's put on here today. We're not, we're only, we're not even halfway through the evening. Sergio, this
06:10is a great event in honor of the 250 years of our country.
06:14And I want to thank you. Not only are you doing a great job tonight, but Sergio and his team
06:18here at the U.S. Embassy are doing a phenomenal job every single day and one of the most important
06:22relationships we have in the world.
06:23Thank you, Sergio. And thank you to our embassy team and everybody that works on it every single day.
06:29I also want to thank all of our friends from the diplomatic corps, various countries, so many that are here
06:35today representing your countries.
06:36We're honored and we're grateful that you would be here today to recognize the 250th anniversary of the founding of
06:42the United States of America.
06:43We're very grateful that all of you are here. Thank you for coming. It's an honor to share this evening
06:48with all of you.
06:49It's a, it's a true privilege. And, and obviously I would be remiss if I did not thank both the,
06:53the welcome and the hospitality that we've gotten from everybody here in India.
06:57And all of your government leaders and in particularly the, the foreign minister who's become someone I've gotten to know
07:03very well.
07:04In fact, and I say this, you maybe you've heard me say this before, but let me say it just
07:07one more time and then the story gets old.
07:09When I became secretary of state, I was sworn in like at noon or 11 a.m. that morning after
07:16the inauguration.
07:17I immediately went over to the State Department and the first meeting I ever had with, among the, was with
07:24a group of the four countries known as the Quad.
07:26And, and one of the people that I met on that very first day and I've interacted with him so
07:30many times as foreign minister, Zay Shankar.
07:32And, and he's been phenomenal. He's a truly wise gentleman and an incredible, does incredible work on behalf of your
07:38country and someone that I, that I have tremendous esteem and respect for.
07:43In fact, I told Sergio when he came here, I said, get to know the, the foreign minister because he
07:48truly knows what he's talking about in terms of global events.
07:52Look, we're honored to be here today to celebrate 250 years of our country.
07:56And we're very proud of the United States of America. We're very proud of its achievements.
08:00There's a lot of things to be proud of about America.
08:02And the one thing I'm really proud about America is it has served as a beacon of hope, not just
08:06around the world, but to individuals.
08:09My own present, my own parents were not born in the United States. My own parents came in 1956.
08:141936,
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