India–United States relations

Indo-American relations

India	United States

[[File:President Barack Obama walking with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh 2009-11-24.jpg|thumb|293pxPresident Barack Obama with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the White House.

India–United States relations (or Indo-American relations) refers to the international relations that exist between the Republic of India and the United States of America.

Despite being one of the pioneers and founding members of the Non-Aligned Movement of 1961, India developed a closer India-Soviet Union relations|relationship with the Soviet Union during the Cold War. During that period, India's relatively cooperative strategic and military relations with Moscow and strong socialist policies had a distinctly adverse impact on its relations with the United States. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, India began to review its foreign policy in a unipolar world, and took steps to develop closer ties with the European Union and the United States, in furtherance of its national interests. Today, India and the US share an extensive cultural, strategic, military, and economic relationship.

Recent relations

India emerged in the 21st century as increasingly vital to core US foreign policy interests. India, the dominant actor in its region, and the home of more than one billion citizens, is now often characterized as a nascent Great Power and an "indispensable partner" of the US, one that many analysts view as a potential counterweight to the growing clout of China. Since 2004, Washington and New Delhi have been pursuing a "strategic partnership" that is based on shared values and generally convergent geopolitical interests. Numerous economic, security, and global initiatives - including plans for civilian nuclear cooperation - are underway. This latter initiative, first launched in 2005, reversed three decades of American non-proliferation policy. Also in 2005, the United States and India signed a ten-year defense framework agreement, with the goal of expanding bilateral security cooperation. The two countries now engage in numerous and unprecedented combined military exercises, and major US arms sales to India have gotten under way. The value of all bilateral trade tripled from 2004 to 2008 and continues to grow, while significant two-way investment also grows and flourishes. The influence of a large Indian-American community is reflected in the largest country-specific caucus in the United States Congress, while more than 100,000 Indian students attend American colleges and universities.

During the tenure of the George W. Bush administration, relations between India and the United States were seen to have blossomed, primarily over common concerns regarding growing Islamic extremism, energy security, and climate change. In November 2010, President Barack Obama visited India and addressed a joint session of the Indian Parliament, where he backed India's bid for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council.

Country comparison

	India	United States
Population	1,210,193,422	314,256,000
Area	3,287,240 km2 (1,269,210 sq mi)	9,850,476 km2 (3,803,290 sq mi)
Population Density	370/km² (958.2/sq mi)	33.7/km² (87.4/sq mi)
Capital	New Delhi	Washington, D.C.
Largest City	Mumbai – 13,922,125 (21,347,412 Metro)	New York City – 8,363,710 (19,006,798 Metro)
Government	Quasi-federal parliamentary constitutional republic	Federal presidential constitutional republic
Official languages	Hindi and English, 21 other constitutionally recognized languages	English (de facto)
Main religions	80.5% Hinduism, 13.4% Islam, 2.3% Christianity, 1.9% Sikhism, 0.8% Buddhism, 0.4% Jainism	78.4% Christianity, 16.1% non-Religious, 1.7% Judaism, 0.7% Buddhism, 0.6% Islam, 0.4% Hinduism
Ethnic groups	See Ethnic Groups of India	74% White American, 14.8% Hispanic and Latino Americans (of any race), 13.4% African American, 6.5% Some other race, 4.4% Asian American, 2.0% Two or more races, 0.68% American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.14% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
GDP (nominal)	$1.848 trillion ($1,389 per capita) (10th)	$15.094 trillion ($48,386 per capita) (1st)
GDP (PPP)	$4.515 trillion ($3,694 per capita)(3rd)	$15.094 trillion ($48,386 per capita) (1st)
Indian Americans	60,000 American born people living in India	2,765,815 People of Indian origin living in the United States
Military expenditures	$46.8 billion (FY 2012)	$663.7 billion (FY 2010)
Military Troops	4,768,407	2,927,754
English Speakers	125,226,449	267,444,149
Labour Forces	478,300,000	154,900,000
Telecommunications(Mobile Phones)	893,843,534	327,577,529

Pre-independence (to 1947)

[[Image:Swami Vivekananda-1893-09-signed.jpg|thumb|right|Swami Vivekananda in Chicago, 1893.]]

Historically, the relationship between India and the US has been strong. This is reflected in the visit of Swami Vivekananda, who introduced Yoga and Vedanta to America. Vivekananda was the first known Hindu Sage to come to the West, where he introduced Eastern thought at the World's Parliament of Religions in Chicago, in connection with the World's Fair there in 1893. His first lecture began with the line, "Sisters and brothers of America ..." [6]. This salutation caused the audience to clap for two minutes - possibly because, prior to this seminal speech, the audience was always used to the opening address: "Ladies and gentlemen...." It was this speech that catapulted Vivekananda to fame, and he continued to address large audiences in Chicago and at numerous other locations in the US, such as Memphis, Boston, San Francisco, New York City, Los Angeles, and St. Louis.

Post-independence (1947-1997)

After Indian independence and until the end of the Cold War, the relationship between the US and India was cold and often thorny. In 1959, Dwight Eisenhower was the first US President to visit India. He was so supportive that the New York Times remarked, "It did not seem to matter much whether Nehru had actually requested or been given a guarantee that the US would help India to meet further Chinese Communist aggression. What mattered was the obvious strengthening of Indian-American friendship to a point where no such guarantee was necessary."

During John F. Kennedy's period as President, India was considered a strategic partner and counterweight to the rise of Communist China. Kennedy said,

"Chinese Communists have been moving ahead the last 10 years. India has been making some progress, but if India does not succeed with her 450 million people, if she can't make freedom work, then people around the world are going to determine, particularly in the underdeveloped world, that the only way they can develop their resources is through the Communist system."

The Kennedy administration was also disturbed by what was considered "blatant Chinese Communist aggression against India" after the Sino-Indian War. In a May 1963 National Security Council meeting, the United States discussed contingency planning that could be implemented in the event of another Chinese attack on India. Defense Secretary Robert McNamara and General Maxwell Taylor advised the president to use nuclear weapons should the Americans intervene in such a situation. Kennedy insisted that Washington defend India as it would any ally, saying, "We should defend India, and therefore we will defend India."

Kennedy's ambassador to India was the noted Canadian-American economist John Kenneth Galbraith. While in India, Galbraith helped establish one of the first Indian computer science departments, at the Indian Institute of Technology in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. As an economist, he also presided over the to-that-date largest US foreign aid program to any country.

From 1961 to 1963, the US promised to help set up a large steel mill in Bokaro, but then later withdrew the offer. Following Kennedy's assassination, Indo-US relations deteriorated gradually and hit an all time low in the early 1970s, especially during 1971 Indo-Pakistani war. By this time, the US established a close relationship with Pakistan, aiding it militarily and economically, as India was seen as leaning toward the Soviet Union. Indo-US relations improved significantly during Jimmy Carter's tenure as US President in the late 1970s. However, when India refused to support the USA during the 1979 Soviet invasion in Afghanistan, the relations between both the countries once again became strained. Not until 1997 was there any significant effort by both the countries to improve relations with each other.

The Hurdles in India-United States Relations

The main hurdles, according to Sailen Debnath, that intermittently impaired the relations between India and the United States have been as under: 1. Though both the countries of India and the U.S.A. have been democratic, in spite of US efforts since the time of Dwight D. Eisenhower and during the period of Kennedy to make and maintain reliable and durable friendship with India, India in the name of non-Alignment played the role of a strong supporter of the Soviet Union, for Nehru and many of his associates and successors suffered from Russophilia and Sinomania; and above all, the Indian left leaders kept constant pressure on Indian foreign policy makers to maintain distance from the U.S.A. 2. India's unreasonable anti-Zionist stand and continuous bickering against Israel proved enough to displease the American policy makers irrespective of party-lines in the U.S.A. 3. The role of Pakistan as a catalyst in normalizing Sino-US relations and India's callousness to play a distinct role against rising China in South Asian and South-East Asian affairs cautioned the U.S.A. not to take long strides in favour of India against the duo of China and Pakistan; and the result was the meeting of Mao and Nixon.

Post-globalization (1998-2008)

Embassy of India in Washington, D.C.

Soon after Atal Bihari Vajpayee became Indian Prime Minister, he authorized nuclear weapons testing at Pokhran. The United States strongly condemned this testing, promised sanctions, and voted in favor of a United Nations Security Council Resolution condemning the tests. President Bill Clinton then imposed economic sanctions on India, including cutting off all military and economic aid, freezing loans by American banks to state-owned Indian companies, prohibiting loans to the Indian government for all except food purchases, prohibiting American technology and uranium exports to India, and requiring the US to oppose all loan requests by India to international lending agencies. However, these sanctions proved ineffective - India was experiencing a strong economic rise, and its trade with the US only constituted a small portion of its GDP. Only Japan joined the US in imposing direct sanctions, while most other nations continued to trade with India. The sanctions were soon lifted. Afterward, the Clinton administration and Prime Minister Vajpayee exchanged representatives to help rebuild relations. In March 2000, U.S. President Bill Clinton visited India, undertaking bilateral and economic discussions with Prime Minister Vajpayee. Over the course of improved diplomatic relations with the Bush Administration, India agreed to allow close international monitoring of its nuclear weapons development, although it has refused to give up its current nuclear arsenal. India and the US since have also greatly increased their economic ties.

After the September 11 attacks against the US in 2001, President George W. Bush collaborated closely with India in controlling and policing the strategically critical Indian Ocean sea lanes from the Suez Canal to Singapore. After the December 2004 tsunami, the US and Indian navies cooperated in search and rescue operations and in the reconstruction of affected areas. An Open Skies Agreement was signed in April 2005, enhancing trade, tourism, and business via the increased number of flights, and Air India purchased 68 US Boeing aircraft at a cost of $8 billion.

Former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made recent visits to India as well in 2005. After Hurricane Katrina, India donated $5 million to the American Red Cross and sent two planeloads of relief supplies and materials to help. Then, on 1 March 2006, President Bush made another diplomatic visit to further expand relations between India and the US.

Military relations

President Richard Nixon and Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi in 1971. They had a deep personal antipathy that colored bilateral relations.

The US-India defense relationship derives from a common belief in freedom, democracy, and the rule of law, and seeks to advance shared security interests. These interests include maintaining security and stability, defeating violent religious extremism and terrorism, preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction and associated materials, data, and technologies, and protecting the free flow of commerce.

In recent years, India has conducted large joint military exercises with the US in the Indian Ocean.

Recognizing India as a key to its strategic interests, the United States has sought to strengthen its relationship with India. The two countries are the world's largest democracies, and both are committed to political freedom protected by representative government. India is also moving (gradually) toward greater economic freedom. The US and India have a common interest in the free flow of commerce and resources, including through the vital sea lanes of the Indian Ocean. They also share an interest in creating a strategically stable Asia.

There have been some differences, however, including US concerns over the nuclear weapons programs and the pace of economic reforms in India. In the past, these concerns may have dominated US thinking, but today the US views India as a growing world power with which it shares common strategic interests. A strong partnership between the two countries will continue to address differences and shape a dynamic and collaborative future.

In late September 2001, President Bush lifted sanctions imposed under the terms of the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act following India's nuclear tests in May 1998. The non-proliferation dialogue has bridged many of the gaps in understanding between the countries. In a meeting between President Bush and Prime Minister Vajpayee in November 2001, the two leaders expressed a strong interest in transforming the US-India bilateral relationship. High-level meetings and concrete cooperation between the two countries increased during 2002 and 2003. In January 2004, the US and India launched the "Next Steps in Strategic Partnership" (NSSP), which was both a milestone in the transformation of the bilateral relationship and a blueprint for its further progress.

In July 2005, Bush hosted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Washington, D.C. The two leaders announced the successful completion of the NSSP, as well as other agreements which further enhanced cooperation in the areas of civil nuclear, civil space, and high-technology commerce. Other initiatives announced included a US-India economic dialogue, the fight Against HIV/AIDS, disaster relief, technology cooperation, democracy initiative, an agriculture knowledge initiative, a trade policy forum, energy dialogue, and a CEO Forum. President Bush made a reciprocal visit to India in March 2006, during which the progress of these initiatives were reviewed, and new initiatives were launched.

In December 2006, the US Congress passed the historic Henry J. Hyde US-India Peaceful Atomic Cooperation Act, which allows direct civilian nuclear commerce with India for the first time in 30 years. US policy had been opposed to nuclear cooperation with India in prior years because India had developed nuclear weapons against international conventions, and had never signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NNPT). The legislation clears the way for India to buy US nuclear reactors and fuel for civilian use.

In July 2007, the two countries reached a historic milestone in their strategic partnership by completing negotiations on the bilateral agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation, also known as the "123 Agreement." Signed on 10 October 2008 by Secretary of State Rice and Indian External Affairs Minister Mukherjee, the agreement governs civil nuclear trade between the two countries, and opens the door for American and Indian firms to participate in each other's civil nuclear energy sector.

Economic relations

The United States is one of India's largest direct investors. From 1991 to 2004, the stock of FDI inflow has increased from USD $11.3 million to $344.4 million, and totaling $4.13 billion. This is a compound rate increase of 57.5 percent annually. Indian direct investments abroad began in 1992, and Indian corporations and registered partnership firms are now allowed to invest in businesses up to 100 percent of their net worth. India's largest outgoing investments are in the manufacturing sector, which accounts for 54.8 percent of the country's foreign investments. The second largest are in non-financial services (software development), accounting for 35.4 percent of investments.

Trade relations

U.S. President George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during a meeting with Indian and American business leaders in New Delhi.

The US is one of India's largest trading partners. In 2007, the US exported $17.24 billion worth of goods to India, and imported $24.02 billion worth of Indian goods. Major items imported from India include information technology services, textiles, machinery, gems and diamonds, chemicals, iron and steel products, coffee, tea, and other edible food products. Major American items imported by India include aircraft, fertilizers, computer hardware, scrap metal, and medical equipment.

The United States is also India's largest investment partner, with a direct investment of $9 billion (accounting for 9 percent of total foreign investment). Americans have made notable foreign investments in the Asian country's power generation, telecommunications, ports, roads, petroleum exploration and processing, and mining industries.

In July 2005, President Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh created a new program called the Trade Policy Forum. It is run by a representative from each nation. The United States Trade Representative was Rob Portman, and the Indian Commerce Secretary then-Minister of Commerce Kamal Nath. The goal of the program is to increase bilateral trade and investment flow. There are five main sub-divisions of the Trade Policy Forum, including:

• The Agricultural Trade group has three main objectives: agreeing on terms that will allow India to export mangoes to the United States, permitting India's Agricultural and Process Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) to certify Indian products to the standards of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and executing regulation procedures for approving edible wax on fruit.

• The goals of the Tariff and Non-Tariff Barriers group include agreeing that insecticides manufactured by US companies can be sold throughout India. India had also agreed to cut special regulations on trading carbonated drinks, many medicinal drugs, and lowering regulations on many imports that are not of an agricultural nature. Both nations have agreed to discuss improved facets of Indian regulation in the trade of jewelry, computer parts, motorcycles, fertilizer, and those tariffs that affect American exporting of boric acid. The group has also discussed matters such as those wishing to break into the accounting market, Indian companies gaining licenses for the telecommunications industry, and setting policies regarding Indian media and broadcasting markets. Other foci include the exchange of valuable information on recognizing different professional services, discussing the movement and positioning of people in developing industries, continuation of talks on financial services markets, limitation of equities, insurance, retail, joint investment in agricultural processing and transportation industries, and small business initiatives.

The majority of exports from the US to India include: aviation equipment, engineering materials and machinery, instruments used in optical and medical sectors, fertilizers, and stones and metals. Below are the percentages of traded items (India to US), which have increased by 21.12 percent to $6.94 billion:

1. Diamonds & precious stones (25 percent)
2. Textiles (29.01 percent)
3. Iron & Steel (5.81 percent)
4. Machinery (4.6 percent)
5. Organic chemicals (4.3 percent)
6. Electrical Machinery (4.28 percent)

Major items of export (US to India) for the year 2006 (up to the month of April) were $2.95 billion USD:

1. Engineering goods & machinery (including electrical) (31.2 percent)
2. Aviation & aircraft (16.8 percent)
3. Precious stones & metals (8.01 percent)
4. Optical instruments & equipment (7.33 percent)
5. Organic chemicals (4.98 percent)

Ties under the Obama Administration (2009-present)

Just days into President Barack Obama’s term, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and India’s External Affairs Minister agreed to "further strengthen the excellent bilateral relationship" between the two countries. Soon afterward, President Obama issued a statement asserting that, "Our rapidly growing and deepening friendship with India offers benefits to all the worlds citizens", and that the people of India "should know they have no better friend and partner than the people of the United States." As part of her confirmation hearing, Hillary Clinton told US senators she would work to fulfill President Obama’s commitment to "establish a true strategic partnership with India, increase our military cooperation, trade, and support democracies around the world."

Despite such top-level assurances from the new US Administration, during 2009 and into 2010, many in India became increasingly concerned that Washington was not focusing on the bilateral relationship with the same vigor as did the previous. Many concerns arose in New Delhi that the Obama Administration was overly focused on US relations with China in ways that would reduce India’s influence and visibility. In addition, the government of India was concerned that America was intent on deepening relations with India’s main rival, Pakistan, in ways that could be harmful to Indian security and perhaps lead to a more interventionist approach to the Kashmir problem, that a new US emphasis on nuclear nonproliferation and arms control would lead to pressure on India to join such multilateral initiatives as the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and the Fissile Materials Cutoff Treaty, and that the Administration might pursue (so-called) protectionist economic policies that could adversely affect bilateral commerce in goods and services.

New Delhi has also long sought the removal of Indian companies and organizations from US export control lists, seeing these as discriminatory and outdated. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake contends that much progress has been made in this area, with less than one-half of one percent of all exports to India requiring any license.

India also continued to seek explicit US support for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. However, the Obama Administration said it recognized a "need to reassess institutions of global governance", and asserted that India’s rise "will certainly be a factor in any future consideration of reform" of that Council.

Secretary of State Clinton was widely seen to have concluded a successful visit to India in July 2009, inking several agreements, making important symbolic points by staying at Mumbai’s Taj Mahal hotel (site of a major Islamist terrorist attack in 2008), and having a high-profile meeting with women’s groups. While in New Delhi, Clinton set forth five "key pillars" of the US-India engagement: (1) strategic cooperation, (2) energy and climate change, (3) economics, trade, and agriculture, (4) education and development, and (5) science, technology, and innovation.

In November 2009, President Obama hosted an inaugural state visit with Prime Minister Singh at the White House. Despite its important symbolism, the resulting diplomacy was seen by many proponents of closer ties as disappointing (if not an outright failure) in its outcome, at least to the extent that no "breakthroughs" in the bilateral relationship were announced. Yet from other perspectives there were visible ideational gains: the relationship was shown to transcend the preferences of any single leader or government, the two leaders demonstrated that their mutual strategic goals were increasingly well-aligned, and plans were made to continue taking advantage of complementarities, with differences being well-managed. Perhaps most significantly, the visit itself contributed to ameliorating concerns in India that the Obama Administration was insufficiently attuned to India’s potential role as a US partner.

President Obama’s May 2010 National Security Strategy noted that, "The United States and India are building a strategic partnership that is underpinned by our shared interests, our shared values as the world’s two largest democracies, and close connections among our people," and

"Working together through our Strategic Dialogue and high-level visits, we seek a broad-based relationship in which India contributes to global counterterrorism efforts, nonproliferation, and helps promote poverty reduction, education, health, and sustainable agriculture. We value India’s growing leadership on a wide array of global issues, through groups such as the G-20, and will seek to work with India to promote stability in South Asia and elsewhere in the world".

June 2010 Strategic Dialogue

In June 2010, the United States and India formally re-engaged the US-India Strategic Dialogue initiated under President Bush when a large delegation of high-ranking Indian officials, led by External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, visited Washington, D.C. As leader of the US delegation, Secretary of State Clinton lauded India as "an indispensible partner and a trusted friend". President Obama appeared briefly at a United States Department of State reception to declare his firm belief that "the relationship between the United States and India will be a defining partnership in the 21st century". The Strategic Dialogue produced a joint statement in which the two countries pledged to "deepen people-to-people, business-to-business, and government-to-government linkages ... for the mutual benefit of both countries and for the promotion of global peace, stability, and prosperity". It outlined extensive bilateral initiatives in each of ten key areas: (1) advancing global security and countering terrorism, (2) disarmament and nonproliferation, (3) trade and economic relations, (4) high technology, (5) energy security, clean energy, and climate change, (6) agriculture, (7) education, (8) health, (9) science and technology, and (10) development. Secretary Clinton also confirmed President Obama’s intention to visit India in November 2010.

President Obama’s planned travel to India

See also: India-United States relations § 2010 visit by President Obama

While US-India engagement under the Obama Administration has not (to date) realized any groundbreaking initiatives (comparable to that of the Bush Administration), it may be that the growing "dominance of ordinariness" in the relationship is a hidden strength that demonstrates its maturing into diplomatic normalcy. In this way, the nascent partnership may yet transform into a "special relationship" similar to those the United States has with the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan, as is envisaged by some proponents of deeper US-India ties.

As the US President planned his November 2010 visit to India, an array of prickly bilateral issues confronted him, including differences over the proper regional roles to be played by China and Pakistan, the status of conflict in Afghanistan, international efforts to address Iran’s controversial nuclear program, restrictions on high-technology exports to India, outsourcing, and sticking points on the conclusion of arrangements for both civil nuclear and defense cooperation, among others.

According to some foreign policy experts, Obama's India visit was going to change US approach towards India permanently. This was later proved when President Obama saw India as a prominent Great Power on the world stage and declared it as one of the most important allies of the US. President Obama also openly supported India's bid for a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council. Obama's India Visit is seen by some foreign relations experts as the most successful US Presidential Visit to India.

Foreign policy issues

According to some analysts, India-US relations have been strained over the Obama administration's approach to handling the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and Pakistan. India's National Security Adviser, M.K. Narayanan, criticized the Obama administration for linking the Kashmir dispute to the instability in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and said that by doing so, President Obama was "barking up the wrong tree". Foreign Policy in February 2009 also criticized Obama's approach to South Asia, saying that "India can be a part of the solution rather than part of the problem" in South Asia. It also suggested that India take a more proactive role in rebuilding Afghanistan, irrespective of the attitude of the Obama Administration. In a clear indication of growing rift between the two countries, India decided not to accept a US invitation to attend a conference on Afghanistan at the end of February 2009. Bloomberg has also reported that, since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the public mood in India has been to pressure Pakistan more aggressively to take actions against the culprits behind the terrorist attack, and that this might reflect on the upcoming Indian general elections in May 2009. Consequently, the Obama Administration may find itself at odds with India's rigid stance against terrorism.

Robert Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, dismissed any concerns over a rift with India regarding American AfPak policy. Calling India and the United States "natural allies", Blake said that the United States cannot afford to meet the strategic priorities in Pakistan and Afghanistan at "the expense of India".

Economic relations

President George W. Bush shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his 2006 visit to India, at Hyderabad House, New Delhi.

India strongly criticized the Obama Administration's decision to limit H-1B (temporary) visas, and India's then External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said that his country would argue against US "protectionism" at various international forums. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad, a close aide to India's main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said that if the United States continues with its anti-outsourcing policies, India will "have to take steps to hurt American companies in India." India's Commerce Minister, Kamal Nath, said that India may move against Obama's outsourcing policies at the World Trade Organization. However, the outsourcing advisory head of KPMG said that India had no reason to worry, since Obama's statements were directed against "outsourcing being carried out by manufacturing companies" and not outsourcing of IT-related services.

In May 2009, President Obama reiterated his anti-outsourcing views and criticized the current US tax policy "that says you should pay lower taxes if you create a job in Bangalore, India, than if you create one in Buffalo, New York." However, during the US-India Business Council meeting in June 2009, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton advocated for stronger economic ties between India and the United States. She also rebuked protectionist policies, saying that "[United States] will not use the global financial crisis as an excuse to fall back on protectionism. We hope India will work with us to create a more open, equitable set of opportunities for trade between our nations."

In June 2009, United States provided diplomatic help in successfully pushing through a $2.9 billion (USD) loan for India sponsored by the Asian Development Bank, despite considerable opposition from China.

Strategic and military relations

See also: Quadrilateral Security Dialogue

U.S. Army and Indian Army soldiers during Yudh Abhyas 2012

As part of that strategy, we [India and U.S.] should expand our broader security relationship and increase cooperation on counterterrorism and intelligence sharing.

— Hillary Clinton, United States Secretary of State

In March 2009, the Obama Administration cleared the $2.1 billion sale of eight P-8 Poseidons to India. This deal, and the $5 billion agreement to provide Boeing C-17 military transport aircraft and General Electric F414 engines announced during Obama's November 2010 visit, makes the US one of the top three military suppliers to India (after Israel and Russia).

India has expressed its concerns that the Obama Administration's non-military aid to Pakistan will not be used for counter-insurgency, but for building up the Pakistani military, which India strongly opposes. However, Robert Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, said that the Pakistani government was increasingly focused on fighting the Taliban insurgency, and expressed hope that the people of India would "support and agree with what we are trying to do".

Concerns were raised in India that the Obama Administration was also delaying the full implementation of the India-US Nuclear Deal. The Obama administration has strongly advocated for the strengthening of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and has pressurized India to sign the agreement. India's special envoy, Shyam Saran, "warned" the United States that India would continue to oppose any such treaty, as it was "discriminatory". In June 2009, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that the Obama administration was "fully committed" to the India-US civil nuclear agreement.

US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen has encouraged stronger military ties between India and the United States, and said that "India has emerged as an increasingly important strategic partner [of the US]". US Undersecretary of State William Joseph Burns also said, "Never has there been a moment when India and America mattered more to each other." The Deputy Secretary of Defense, Ashton Carter, during his address to the Asia Society in New York on August 1, 2012 said that India-US relationship is has a global scope, in terms of the reach and influence of both countries. He also said that both countries are strengthening the relations between their defence and research organisations.

2010 visit by President Obama

In November 2010, Obama became the second US President (after Richard Nixon in 1969) to undertake a visit to India in his first term in office. On 8 November, Obama also became the second US President to ever address a joint session of the Parliament of India. In a major policy shift, Obama declared US support for India's permanent membership on the UN Security Council. Calling the India-US relationship "a defining partnership of the 21st century", he also announced the removal of export control restrictions on several Indian companies, and concluded trade deals worth $10 billion, which are expected to create and/or support 50,000 jobs in the US.

See also

• India as an emerging superpower
• Embassy of India in Washington, DC
• Foreign relations of India
• Foreign relations of the United States
• United States-India Peaceful Atomic Energy Cooperation Act
• American Library (New Delhi)
• Quadrilateral Security Dialogue

Notes

India US TradeIndia US Trade in 2015US Trade with BRIC: China holds the key Economic profile of India and the United States iyty

Sources

• Blake, Jr., Robert O. "U.S.-India Relations: the Making of a Comprehensive Relationship." U.S. Embassy India. Army War College, Indore, India. 23 August 2004, 6 October 2006 <www.state.gov>.
• "India - U.S. Economics Relations." Embassy of India - Washington DC. 8 October 2006
• Kronstadt, K. A. India-U.S. Relations. Library of Congress. 2006. 17–19. 8 October 2006.
• Roy, Dr. P. C. Indo-U.S. Economic Relations. Rajouri Garden, New Delhi: Deep & Deep Publications, 1986. 73–125.

External links

• History of India - U.S. Relations
• Indian Embassy: India – U.S. Relations: A General Overview
• Deepening U.S.-India Economic Engagement, Q&A with Ambassador Susan Esserman (September 2011)
• A Way Forward in U.S.-India Defense Cooperation, July 2011 interview with Stephen P. Cohen and Sunil Dasgupta
• Charting the Future of U.S.-India Relations, June 2011 interview with Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering
• U.S. Department of state: The Future of US-India Relations
• U.S. Department of Agriculture: U.S.–India Trade Relations
• India US Trade Summary
• Sharma, G D Indo Us Defence Cooperation, Vij Books, 2012, ISBN 9789381411438