Political India: Engaging America

From The Hindu

In an unmistakable indication of backroom discussions shifting up a gear before President Barack Obama’s India visit in November, the State Department announced today that United States National Security Advisor General Jim Jones met with Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao to “continue preparations for the President’s upcoming visit”.

According to an official statement General Jones and Ms. Rao reviewed the progress being made in a number of areas, including agriculture, education, economic cooperation, and security. Additionally, General Jones and Ms. Rao were said to have discussed other developments in South Asia, noting their “mutual desire for stability”.

Ms. Rao is in Washington principally to keep the discussions moving forward and it has been announced that next week, Indian Industry Minister Anand Sharma will be in town to similarly add momentum to bilateral trade policy discussions.

The visiting Indian officials were said to be holding meetings with senior U.S. counterparts, including Under Secretary for Political Affairs William Burns, Under Secretary for Defence Michèle Flournoy, Under Secretary of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security Eric Hirschhorn, and Chairman of House Foreign Affairs Committee Howard Berman.

While it would appear that the U.S. has in general had a positive attitude towards the bilateral relationship, the Indian side has been pressing for further progress with issues such as the H1-B visa fee hike, India’s interest in securing U.S. support for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council and its hope that export control restrictions would be eased.

Nuclear liability bill, counter-terrorism on agenda

According to sources, counter-terrorism, and in particular, its cross-border aspects including infiltration, have been an important component of the ongoing talks between the two countries.

So has the civil nuclear liability bill, even if progress on the ground in this area was expected to be gradual. In this sphere, the main argument that India has sought to convey to the U.S. was that the liability bill passed in the Indian Parliament did not contain provisions that were additional to what already existed in common law and did not contradict the Convention on Supplementary Compensation.

The hope was also that all nuclear suppliers participating in India’s nuclear industry would operate on a level playing field, according to sources, and that India was open to continuing a dialogue with the supplier companies.

The U.S.-India dialogue will also cover some new policy subjects of mutual interest such as the governance of the global commons, including maritime security and antipiracy, and ocean domain awareness, it was learned.

Labels: Barack Obama India visit, Jim Jones, Nirupama Rao, Strategic Dialogue, U.S. State Department

From The Hindu

On a two-day visit to New Delhi, United States National Security Advisor General James Jones met with his Indian counterpart, Shiv Shankar Menon and discussed preparations for the upcoming visit in November by President Barack Obama.

In a statement, Deputy Spokesman of the National Security Council Ben Chang said General Jones hoped “the visit will be a demonstration of the strong cooperation and enduring partnership between the U.S. and India”.

During his stay in New Delhi through July 14 and 15 General Jones was said to have met with Mr. Menon and other senior Indian officials to discuss the full range of key bilateral issues facing the two countries, “including regional security, cooperation in Afghanistan, and trade and economic relations”.

Mr. Chang added that General Jones’ “successful” visit had reinforced the strategic partnership between India and the U.S., a partnership defined by “a foundation of common principles and values. He also said that while in India, General Jones had helped map out further areas in which mutual cooperation could lead to greater prosperity, security, and progress for countries and the world.

In addition to Mr. Menon, General Jones was said to have met with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Minister for Home Affairs P. Chidambaram, Minister for Defence A.K. Antony, Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee P.V. Naik, and Leader of the Opposition Arun Jaitley.

Mr. Chang said General Jones had expressed his appreciation for the hospitality and warmth of his interlocutors and the people of India.

Labels: Barack Obama India visit, James Jones, Shiv Shankar Menon