Donald Trump used his presidential powers on January 20, 2025, to sign an executive order pulling birthright citizenship from children born in America if their parents lack legal immigration status. Over the next 30 days, the Trump administration's executive order changes how we apply the 14th Amendment, impacting many families with Indian residents currently living in the US.

Key Changes

• New Definition: The executive order says only children whose parents are U.S. citizens, legal residents, or in the military can get U.S. citizenship.

• Non-Citizens: When immigrants live illegally in the U.S. or come for a short time only, their children will not automatically become American citizens.

• Effective Date: The new rules will start 30 days from today and won't affect citizenship decisions made before that.

Impact on Indian Nationals

• Mainly focused on countries where many people come to the U.S. illegally, India falls in this category of priority nations. In the U.S., Indian parents and workers on H-1B visas or waiting for green cards will have their children lose their right to automatic citizenship.

• Green Card Delays: This rule may make the current problem of long waiting times for green cards from India even worse.

Legal Challenges

Groups fighting for immigrant rights have sued the government for why their proposal goes against longstanding American law and violates a key part of the Constitution that makes everyone born in America their country's citizen.

Historical Context

• The 14th Amendment (from 1868) gives babies born in America automatic citizenship and an 1898 Supreme Court decision says this is the correct way to read the law.

• Opponents say that U.S. citizens have taken advantage of citizenship rules by moving to the country just to give birth and gain citizenship for foreign-born children.

What Stays the Same

• Children born in America before the law takes effect will keep their U.S. citizenship.

• Even after the law change, children whose parents are American citizens or holders of green cards, or who are military personnel, will still be able to claim U.S. citizenship.

Impact on India

• Citizenship Issues for Children: Indians who come to the U.S. on H-1B, student, or temporary visas won't have their children automatically become U.S. citizens at birth anymore.

• Increased Green Card Delays: The new rule could make India's already lengthy green card waiting period worse, breaking up families longer and making their future in the US hang in more doubt.

• Impact on Birth Tourism: The new rule stops U.S.-born babies from automatically getting citizenship if their mothers seek maternity care in America from India.

• The strain on India-U.S. Relations: The different immigration rules will damage India's good relations with America, making life harder for the many Indian-born people living in the United States.

• Discouraging Skilled Professionals: Skilled Indians will think twice about moving to or working in the U.S. if they're not sure where their family members will stand in terms of citizenship status, which hurts Indian talent selection.

• Influence on Migration Decisions: When the U.S. changes how family members can get American citizenship, Indians planning to move there must think harder about their immigration path because their family's situation will be more confusing.

Conclusion

The decision to stop giving birthright citizenship impacts Indian families deeply who either work or study here on temporary visas. U.S. immigration policies related to birthright citizenship create uncertainties for Indian immigrants who must worry about waiting longer for green cards while family reunification becomes harder and there's increased pressure to send their children to the U.S. to give them citizenship. Since this policy comes at a time when many Indians live in the U.S., it may make it harder for our countries to stay friendly with each other. The new ruling could also make many smart Indian professionals choose to stay in their own country rather than move to the U.S., which may change how India sends out its best minds.

India and France have signed a deal to make their technology partnerships stronger in four leading industries: artificial intelligence, defense systems, space programs, and cyber security. The two nations looked at how well they were following the 2023 India-France Horizon 2047 Roadmap, which aims to boost trade, investments, and military cooperation between them. Prime Minister Modi’s Paris trip later this year coincides with an AI convention, showing how serious he and his French counterparts are about AI progress. The leaders of India and France talked together about worldwide problems such as the Ukraine conflict, West Asian politics, environmental change, and healthcare, and also decided to join efforts in the Indo-Pacific region. Despite deals already in place for Rafale jets and Jaitapur Nuclear Power, France and India keep working together, but the Jaitapur project is facing delays from rising costs and legal matters. As a teamwork, each state is evaluating potential partnerships involving small nuclear power plants and shared research projects with other countries.

Context:

• Strengthening Bilateral Cooperation: India and France will work together on improving their technology partnerships in fields like artificial intelligence, defense, space research, and digital security.

• Horizon 2047 Roadmap: The two nations checked progress on the direction-setting Horizon 2047 Roadmap they created last July to enhance their partnerships in business, investments, and defense.

• Prime Minister Modi's Visit: Prime Minister Modi will be in Paris next February at an AI summit as part of India's ongoing efforts to build stronger relationships with France.

• Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project: India and EDF have problems talking through their issues with the Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project in Maharashtra because of the costs, slow work, and how India handles claims from people who get hurt.

• Future of Nuclear Cooperation: Both countries are working together on developing Small Modular Reactors while they try to move past problems so they can keep going with the Jaitapur project.

India-France relations

India and France have indeed blossomed into a qualitatively complex strategic relationship, especially in defense, space, economic, digital, and multilateral spheres.

• Defense Cooperation: France is the second largest arms supplier to India which includes a few major projects such as Rafale aircraft and the P-75 Scorpene Submarine project. 

  • To meet Indian defense needs and to create export potential both of the nations have started a program called ‘defense industrial roadmap’ aiming at co-design, co-development, and co-production. 

  • Their intensified military cooperation is evidenced by the bilateral exercises: VARUNA and FRINJEX-23.

• Geo-Strategic: Reacting to the shifting dynamics in the region in 2023, Paris and New Delhi have begun to build the Indo-Pacific Roadmap for India-France cooperation in ensuring the stability of the area, which has broadened the topic of bilateral cooperation from the Indian Ocean space to the larger Indo-Pacific region.

• Space Cooperation: France remains the partner of India in space affairs providing parts and discussing future projects including the TRISHNA Earth Observation mission and LV tech.

• Economic Cooperation: France is among the top ten sources of FDI for India in the fiscal year 2022, with an FDI of $659.77 million. 

  • Tata Group and Airbus signed an understanding to produce Indian-built civilian helicopters as well as Akasa Air acquiring more than 300 LEAP-1B engines from CFM International.

• Digital Cooperation: India and France have taken UPI to the global level by launching the Unified Payments Interface from the Eiffel Tower and announced cooperation between PayTM and Orange for safe transactions for Indian tourists and Non-Resident Indians. 

  • Also, France has designed supercomputers for India which includes Param Siddhi, the fastest supercomputer in India.

• Multilateral Cooperation: France has backed India’s aspiration for a permanent membership of the UNSC and supported India on issues including Kashmir and terrorism and on nonproliferation endeavors. 

  • France assisted in the inclusion of India in MTCR in the year 2008, WA in the year 2011 and AG in the year 2016.

Conclusion

India and France plan to expand their technological connections between their countries, as their partnership develops. Working together on defense, nuclear programs, and worldwide problems helps keep India and France as each other's most important military partners. Their collaboration on new technologies and world matters continues to grow, even though the Jaitapur project faces issues.