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In a landmark development that signals a decisive shift in India’s global technology posture, New Delhi formally acceded to the Pax Silica Declaration on February 20, 2026, at the AI Impact Summit held in New Delhi. The signing ceremony, attended by Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, US Under Secretary for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg, and US Ambassador Sergio Gor, marks India’s formal entry into one of the most consequential technology alliances of the modern era.
What Is Pax Silica?
Launched on December 12, 2025, Pax Silica is a US-led strategic coalition of allied nations committed to building secure, resilient, and innovation driven supply chains for technologies that underpin the AI era. The initiative encompasses the full spectrum of the technology stack – from critical minerals and rare earth elements deep in the earth, to silicon wafers, semiconductors, advanced computing infrastructure, and artificial intelligence systems. The name itself is evocative: “Pax,” the Latin word for peace, combined with “Silica,” the compound refined into silicon – the bedrock of modern technology.
Why India’s Entry Matters
India’s accession to the Pax Silica Declaration is not merely a diplomatic formality. It reflects a calculated and strategic alignment with a bloc of democratic nations determined to reduce what Helberg described as “massively over concentrated” supply chains and resist “threats of economic coercion and blackmail” widely understood as a reference to China’s tightening grip on rare earth exports and semiconductor manufacturing. By joining this coalition, India signals its intent to be an active architect of a new global technology order rather than a passive participant.
Alongside the Pax Silica Declaration, India and the United States also signed a bilateral Joint Statement on the “India-US AI Opportunity Partnership,” positioning the two nations as collaborative leaders in artificial intelligence development and deployment.
The Road Ahead
India’s entry into Pax Silica opens tangible pathways for government to government cooperation as well as private sector partnerships across member nations. Ambassador Gor confirmed that a bilateral trade deal is imminent and that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to visit India in the coming months – further evidence of a rapidly deepening strategic relationship.
For India, Pax Silica represents far more than a supply chain agreement. It is an assertion of sovereignty, a commitment to technological self reliance, and a declaration that New Delhi intends to stand at the forefront of the democratic world’s effort to secure the silicon foundations of the AI century.
