US primed to unlock potential of ties with India: Obama

Washington

The US is “primed to unlock” the potential of relations with India as part of its rebalance to Asia and the Pacific, President Barack Obama has said as he unveiled his new national security policy, days after his historic second trip to India.

Sending his second National Security Strategy (NSS) to Congress, Obama said, “We are primed to unlock the potential of our relationship with India.”

“Our rebalance to Asia and the Pacific is yielding deeper ties with a more diverse set of allies and partners. When complete, the Trans-Pacific Partnership will generate trade and investment opportunities and create high-quality jobs at home across a region that represents more than 40 per cent of global trade,” he said.

Running into more than 30 pages, the National Security Strategy says, in South Asia, the US continue to strengthen its strategic and economic partnership with India.

“As the world’s largest democracies, we share inherent values and mutual interests that form the cornerstone of our cooperation, particularly in the areas of security, energy, and the environment,” it said.

“We support India’s role as a regional provider of security and its expanded participation in critical regional institutions. We see a strategic convergence with India’s Act East policy and our continued implementation of the rebalance to Asia and the Pacific,” the strategy said.

“At the same time, we will continue to work with both India and Pakistan to promote strategic stability, combat terrorism, and advance regional economic integration in South and Central Asia,” said the National Security Strategy.

This is the second national security strategy of the Obama administration, the first one being released in May 2010.

In the 2010 strategy, the White House said the US and India are building a strategic partnership that is underpinned by their shared interests, shared values as the world’s two largest democracies, and close connections among people.

“India’s responsible advancement serves as a positive example for developing nations, and provides an opportunity for increased economic, scientific, environmental, and security partnership,” the 2010 edition of the NSS said.

Obama said the scope of US cooperation with China is unprecedented, even as US remains alert to China’s military modernisation and reject any role for intimidation in resolving territorial disputes.

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