New Delhi, 1 August, 2014

Below is a joint statement issued by the United States and India on July 31, 2014 in New Delhi on the Fifth India-U.S. Strategic Dialogue:

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External Affairs Minister of India Sushma Swaraj and Secretary of State John F. Kerry led their respective delegations to the fifth annual India-U.S. Strategic Dialogue.

The two sides recognized that the decisive mandate provided by the Indian people to their new Government provided a unique opportunity to re-energize this relationship. They expressed confidence that the Summit Meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama in Washington D.C. in September 2014 would generate new dynamism in the relationship.

The two sides welcomed the participation of Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker and Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman in the Strategic Dialogue and the productive discussions they held on bilateral trade and economic issues in their inaugural meeting. They looked forward to the visit of U.S. Defense Secretary Hagel in August 2014 to deepen discussions on military exercises, defense trade, co-production and co­development, and research on new technologies for defense, in keeping with the Summit-level Joint Declaration on Defense Cooperation issued in September 2013.

Faced by a common threat from terrorism, including in South Asia, the two leaders committed to intensify efforts to combat terrorism, proliferation of WMDs, nuclear terrorism, cross-border crime, and address the misuse of the internet for terrorist purposes, in compliance with respective laws. The two leaders welcomed the continuation of the Counter-Terrorism Joint Working Group process, sustained exchanges of senior experts, and the upcoming meeting of the Working Group in 2014. They also welcomed plans to hold the next Ministerial Homeland Security Dialogue. They agreed to have their Central Authorities meet to discuss ways to improve mutual legal assistance and extradition processes. They also agreed to work towards greater cooperation in cyber security and reducing cybercrime.

The two leaders reviewed efforts since November 2010 toward India’s phased entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the Wassenaar Arrangement and the Australia Group. Secretary Kerry reaffirmed the United States’ support for India’s membership in these groups and welcomed India’s recent decision to ratify its Additional Protocol with the IAEA. The two leaders supported an early conclusion to these efforts.

Secretary Kerry welcomed raised foreign investment ceilings in several sectors of the Indian economy, including defense, railways, e-commerce and insurance. The two sides agreed to identify specific areas for investment in India’s manufacturing and infrastructure sectors including through establishing a new initiative in this regard. They also sought to empower the India-U.S. CEO Forum to build a better business environment.

Minister Swaraj and Secretary Kerry resolved to discuss bilateral trade and economic concerns in a spirit of partnership, including at the Ministerial Trade Policy Forum in India that both governments hope to convene in Fall 2014, focusing on key trade and investment issues. The two sides plan to expand the Commercial Dialogue. They also agreed that India would host the next round of the High Technology Cooperation Group on mutually convenient dates this year.

Minister Swaraj welcomed the United States as a partner country, for the first time, at India’s annual Technology Summit in November 2014. The leaders looked forward to the convening of the next bilateral Joint Science & Technology Committee meeting immediately preceding that event. Secretary Kerry welcomed India’s commitment to the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) including in the areas of anti-microbial resistance and immunization.

The Leaders welcomed work under the Partnership to Advance Clean Energy (PACE) in its Research and Deployment components. They reviewed the new initiative on Promoting Energy Access through Clean Energy (PEACE) in bringing Indian citizens in rural areas access to off-grid sources of clean energy. They welcomed outcomes facilitated by the Joint Clean Energy Research and Development Centre in solar technologies, second generation biofuels and energy efficient buildings. They also intend to scale-up existing initiatives on space cooling, to reduce demand for power for air-conditioning.

The leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the full implementation of the India­U.S. civil nuclear agreement. They welcomed the Authorization to Proceed provided to Westinghouse to implement the pre-Early Works Agreement with NPCIL as of September 2013.Both sides urged NPCIL and U.S. companies Westinghouse and General Electric-Hitachi to expedite the necessary work to conclude pricing and contractual details. They looked forward to advancing the government-to-government dialogue and facilitating the establishment of U.S.-built nuclear power plants in India.

The leaders also welcomed progress in the bilateral dialogue on nuclear safety, nuclear security regulatory processes, the establishment of India’s Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership (GCNEP), and projects in fundamental physics. They urged expedited agreements and arrangements to facilitate Indian participation in the High Intensity Superconducting Proton Accelerator Project, the Thirty Meter Telescope, Monsoon studies, and Joint Oceanic surveys. The leaders appreciated India joining the Partnership for International Research and Education (PIRE) program of the U.S. National Science Foundation, which will facilitate support for high-quality research projects across identified disciplines.

The Minister and the Secretary welcomed civil space cooperation between India and the United States in Earth Observation, Space Exploration and Satellite Navigation. New focus areas could include joint realization of dual frequency microwave satellite for earth observation and launch services. Both sides plan to continue discussions on space security in 2014, to include areas of mutual interest such as space situational awareness and collision avoidance.

The two sides identified education and skills development as an important area of future cooperation. They called for partnerships between Indian and U.S. testing services institutions to improve nation-wide student assessments in India.

Minister Swaraj and Secretary Kerry recognized that a truly strategic India-U.S. partnership was a significant contributor to regional peace, stability and prosperity in the South Asian region, Asia, and globally. They reaffirmed their commitment to jointly support other partner countries, including through capacity-building in Afghanistan, agriculture management projects in Kenya, Liberia and Malawi, and Open Government Platforms in Rwanda and Ghana. They emphasized the need for India, the United States and Japan to work together to build transport and trade connectivity between South Asia and ASEAN, via Myanmar, including by developing economic corridors.

The leaders reaffirmed their commitment to work towards a successful outcome in Paris in 2015 of the work of the Ad-hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The two sides convened the first round of bilateral consultations under the India-U.S. Joint Working Group on Climate Change, continuing their enhanced dialogue on an ambitious climate change agreement for the post-2020 period, and strengthening bilateral efforts in the areas of clean technology, smart grid, energy efficiency, adaptation strategies, sustainable forestry and REDD+ issues.

Minister Swaraj and Secretary Kerry reaffirmed their commitment to ensure that the United Nations Security Council continues to effectively play its role in maintaining international peace and security as envisioned in the UN Charter. Secretary Kerry reaffirmed that the United States looks forward to a reformed UN Security Council that includes India as a permanent member. The two leaders intend to upgrade the existing dialogue on Peacekeeping into a broader dialogue on UN issues, the first round of which India offered to host prior to the UN General Assembly session in September.

The two leaders reaffirmed their support for a unified, independent and sovereign Afghanistan. They expressed admiration for the determination of the Afghan people to exercise their democratic right to vote despite the significant threat from terrorist elements. They welcomed the efforts of the two Presidential candidates, and all Afghan institutions involved in the current electoral process to work together with the United Nations to ensure the timely completion of the ongoing process, so that the elections are a source of unity and strength for the country and a source of stability for the region. Both sides agreed to continue their engagement with Afghanistan on this issue.

Minister Swaraj and Secretary Kerry reiterated their condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and reaffirmed their commitment to eliminating terrorist safe havens and infrastructure, and disrupting terrorist networks including Al-Qa’ida and the Lashkar-e-Taiba. The leaders called for Pakistan to work toward bringing the perpetrators of the November 2008 Mumbai attacks to justice.

The leaders reiterated their deep concern at the current situation in Iraq, which posed a direct threat to the security of the people and the territorial integrity of Iraq. They affirmed that they attached the highest priority to the security and safety of their respective nationals in Iraq. They stood by the people of Iraq in their fight against international terrorism and their efforts to preserve Iraq’s unity and territorial integrity, recognizing that a stable, peaceful, united and democratic Iraq is in the interest of regional and global peace and security.

Both sides expressed concern at the steep escalation of violence in Gaza and Israel, resulting in the loss of numerous civilian lives and damage to property. They called upon both sides to exercise maximum restraint and expressed hope that necessary conditions will be created for a sustainable ceasefire and the early resumption of peace talks, towards a comprehensive resolution of the Middle East issue. They also expressed deep concern at the continuing violence and deteriorating humanitarian situation in Syria, which impacts significantly on the security and stability of the region. The leaders reiterated the importance of a Syrian-led comprehensive political solution to the crisis, in alignment with the Geneva Communique of 2012. They urged all parties to demonstrate the requisite political will, exercise restraint and commit to seeking common ground in accommodating their differences.

The two leaders encouraged Departments and Ministries on both sides to continue to evolve ambitious plans to further the partnership. Secretary Kerry thanked Minister Swaraj for hosting the fifth Strategic Dialogue in New Delhi. They agreed to convene the next round in the United States in 2015.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesperson
July 31, 2014
FACT SHEET
U.S.-India Energy and Climate Cooperation

Recognizing the strategic importance of energy access and security, and building on our partnership under the U.S.-India Energy Dialogue, the United States and India continue to expand energy cooperation and exchange best practices. Acknowledging the significant risks climate change and environmental health pose to both countries, the United States and India are also furthering cooperation on addressing, mitigating, and adapting to the effects climate change. Together, our two countries are working to diversify and expand energy resources, promote energy efficiency, and address the global concerns of climate change.

· U.S.-India Energy Dialogue: The United States and India held the Energy Dialogue in March 2014 in New Delhi. The Working Groups for Coal; Oil and Gas; New Technologies and Renewable Energy; and Power and Energy Efficiency addressed cooperation in electrical grid and power generation, energy efficiency, oil and gas exploration and investment, expanding markets for renewable energy technologies, and addressing barriers to clean energy deployment. The two sides inaugurated a new Working Group for Sustainable Growth, which has since held three workshops. The first was held on the sidelines of the Energy Dialogue in March with a focus on geospatial analysis of renewable energy options. The other two workshops on energy data management and energy modeling were held in April. All workshops were attended by the Government of India’s Planning Commission and other Indian ministries, representatives of India’s private sector, and U.S. researchers from the Department of Energy laboratories. The Civil Nuclear Energy Working Group met at Idaho National Laboratory in July 2014 to review ongoing technical cooperation and set milestones for collaboration in the coming year.

· U.S.-India Partnership to Advance Clean Energy (PACE): Launched in 2009, PACE brings together seven U.S. government agencies to partner with India on a broad range of clean energy research and deployment activities. Since its inception, PACE has mobilized more than $2 billion in public and private clean energy finance to support India’s clean energy goals, including support for 20% of India’s first 1,000 megawatts of installed solar energy capacity. Under PACE’s $125 million Joint Clean Energy Research and Development Center, three consortia are now in their second year of cutting-edge research on solar energy, building energy efficiency, and advanced biofuels. In addition, the $20-million PACE-D Technical Assistance Program is supporting multiple activities at the national and state levels on renewable energy, energy efficiency, finance, and cleaner fossil energy.

· Promoting Energy Access through Clean Energy (PEACE): The newest component of PACE is the PEACE initiative, launched by the Governments of India and the United States in September 2013 to harness commercial enterprise to bring clean energy access to unserved and underserved Indian villages. During the March 2014 Energy Dialogue, the two governments finalized a Plan of Activities for PEACE, announcing their intent to jointly provide $8 million to a new “PACEsetter Fund” to support the development of early-stage, innovative off-grid clean energy solutions. In July, USAID announced the creation of a Clean Energy Access Network (CLEAN), a new alliance of businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and government to strengthen India’s ecosystem in support of market-driven approaches to energy access. CLEAN will deliver a range of services for off-grid clean energy suppliers and consumers in order to reduce operational barriers, provide a platform for policy dialogue, mobilize finance, and accelerate innovation.

· Off-Grid Alliance: The United States and India agreed to launch the Off-Grid Alliance, a central component of the PEACE initiative. The Off-Grid Alliance will deliver services in five areas: (1) access to finance; (2) skills and training; (3) testing and certification of technology; (4) policy dialogue and advocacy; and (5) network and exchange of lessons learned.

· Space Cooling Collaboration: Also part of PACE, the U.S.-India Cooling Collaboration on Smart and Efficient Air Conditioning and Space Cooling was launched at the June 2013 Strategic Dialogue. India’s Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) and the U.S. Department of Energy organized a two-day workshop in New Delhi attended by over one hundred domestic and international experts to address India’s rapidly growing electricity demand from air conditioners. The workshop was organized in collaboration with the Clean Energy Ministerial’s Super-efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD) and 21st Century Power Partnership initiatives.

· GETCO Renewable Power Integration Project: Under the U.S.-India Energy Cooperation Program, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and the Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation Limited (GETCO) announced a partnership to support GETCO in managing the integration of increasing amounts of wind and solar power generation into its bulk power transmission system. The project, to be carried out by Quanta Technology, LLC, will ensure load balancing and frequency regulation for transmission operations as new and renewable power generation is brought online. Both the ECP and this project with GETCO are part of the PACE initiative.

· Climate Change Working Group: The first meeting of the U.S.-India Climate Change Working Group was held July 30 on the margins of the Strategic Dialogue. The group discussed how best to: achieve an ambitious multilateral global agreement on climate change in Paris in 2015 for the post-2020 period; promote existing and new cooperation on clean energy, smart grid, and energy efficiency; increase cooperation on adaptation and resiliency to climate change; and increase cooperation on sustainable forestry and Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+). The group also continued discussions on phasing down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and discussed other areas of potential joint work, including air quality monitoring and improving environmental health.

· Ocean and Atmospheric Collaboration: The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) have maintained a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) since 2008. Through this agreement the science agencies have executed numerous projects covering a range of collaborative research, including a buoy array operation in the Indian Ocean for ocean and climate monitoring, tropical cyclone modeling, weather and monsoon forecasting, marine fisheries and harmful algal blooms.

· Forest Resource Management Innovation Projects and Forest Carbon Analysis Initiative: Reducing forest degradation is a key objective of the U.S. Government’s climate change partnership with India. USAID recently made four new awards to Indian organizations to implement innovative solutions in the forestry sector under the priority areas of: (1) supporting innovations for fuel wood management; (2) strengthening systems for forest resources management; and (3) increasing income of forest dependent communities. These projects contribute to USAID’s broader goal of improving the lives of people who live at the base of the economic pyramid in India by supporting innovations at the interface of climate change, forest degradation, and forest-dependent communities. In addition, USAID is supporting a new initiative to strengthen India’s efforts to monitor forest carbon emissions and carbon sequestration, design and implement improved forest management programs, and ultimately participate in international mechanisms such as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+).

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesperson
July 31, 2014
FACT SHEET
U.S.-India Science and Technology, Innovation, and Health Cooperation

Science and technology cooperation between the United States and India strengthens our bilateral relationship, promotes economic growth, and allows us to develop new and innovative technologies and products to address shared challenges. The United States and India believe that science, technology, and innovation are key tools that will help us address global challenges such as climate change, health, education, food, water, and energy security. Both countries support cutting edge research and are building public-private partnerships that promote science and technology-based innovation and entrepreneurship. The United States and India also recognize the importance of gender equality in the scientific workforce, and have conducted numerous exchanges to encourage increased participation of women and girls in science. Over the past year, two bilateral endowments – the Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) and U.S.-India Science and Technology Endowment Fund – have provided roughly $3 million to fund hundreds of exchange visits and support technology commercialization through U.S.-India joint ventures.

· India-U.S. Technology Summit: The India-U.S. Technology Summit will take place in New Delhi, November 18-19, under the theme “Tackling 21st Century Challenges Together.” The Summit will include participation from several hundred companies, academic institutions, and scientists, and will build productive partnerships in joint research and development, technology commercialization, and joint business ventures designed to promote trade and investment between our two countries. The Summit’s main components include a government-to-government program led by the Indian Department of Science and Technology and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; and a Trade Show and Exhibition for Indian and U.S. companies and economic development organizations to promote their products, services and technologies. The Summit will feature expert panels including innovators, businesses, financiers, regulators and community stakeholders. The featured sectors include manufacturing technology, processes and equipment; life sciences, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and healthcare; clean and renewable energy; sustainable cities, natural resources and earth sciences; and IT hardware, software, embedded systems, and homeland and cyber security. (www.indoustechnologysummit.in)

· U.S.-India Science and Technology Joint Commission Meeting: The Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) will be held November 14-17 in New Delhi. Co-Chaired by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and India’s Ministry of Science and Technology, the JCM provides strategic guidance to science agencies on the overall direction of S&T relations, identifying current and future areas for collaboration. Representatives in the JCM also discuss policy issues such as women in science and innovation and technology commercialization, and they provide strategic direction to the Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum and the Science and Technology Endowment Fund, which are able to utilize funds to implement outcomes of the JCM.

· Science and Technology Endowment Fund: The U.S.-India Science and Technology Endowment Board announced awards under the Fourth Call for proposals under the Science and Technology Endowment Fund. The Endowment Fund supports and fosters joint applied R&D to generate public good through the commercialization of technology developed through sustained partnerships between U.S. and Indian researchers and entrepreneurs. The Fund’s most recent annual awards support the development of innovative projects under the “Healthy Individual” and “Empowering Citizens” categories of Board objectives. U.S. and Indian collaborators received awards to support a range of projects such as developing low-cost medical examination equipment, producing affordable safe drinking water, developing stress-tolerant crops, and commercializing low-cost building materials for low-income housing.

· U.S.-India Millennium Alliance: The USAID-supported Millennium Alliance uses partnership platforms to convene traditional and non-traditional actors to accelerate innovative models that address global development challenges in the health, agriculture, water, energy, and education sectors. The Millennium Alliance brings together public and private partners to leverage Indian creativity, expertise, and resources to source and scale innovative solutions to development challenges that affect base of the pyramid populations across India and the world. USAID also supports several other innovation platforms such as the READ Alliance, Urban Water/Sanitation/Hygiene (WASH) Alliance, India-Africa Agriculture Bridge, CLEAN Off-Grid Alliance, Tuberculosis Alliance, and Reproductive Maternal/Newborn/Child Health (RMNCH) Alliance, all aimed at using public-private partnerships to harness S&T and innovation expertise to address major development challenges.

· Civil Space Cooperation: The U.S. and India continue to carry out and expand upon cooperation taking place under the U.S.-India Civil Space Joint Working Group (CSJWG). NASA and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) continue to make progress on the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission. This mission is intended to generate a vast bank of earth observation data for use in novel applications by researchers to benefit global food security, freshwater availability, human health, disaster prediction and hazard response, climate risks and adaptation, and urban management and planning. NASA is providing deep space navigation and tracking support to ISRO’s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) as it continues its journey in space and prepares for its arrival at the Red Planet in late September 2014, just two days after NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission completes its journey. NASA and ISRO look forward to discussing ways to collaborate on these two Mars missions to take advantage of their complementary observations. NASA and ISRO, along with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as a Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission partner continue productive cooperation on the ISRO-French Space Agency (CNES) Megha Tropiques mission. NASA, NOAA, and ISRO also continue effective cooperation in the calibration, validation, and application of ocean color observation data, and until recently, of ocean surface vector wind data, on ISRO’s Oceansat-2 mission. NOAA looks forward to collaborating with ISRO on future follow-on ocean surface vector wind missions. NASA and ISRO have initiated a professional engineer and scientist exchange program. The United States and India also look forward to continued discussion regarding the development of India’s regional navigation satellite system in a manner that is compatible and interoperable with GPS.

· Safe Drinking Water: USAID is prioritizing public-private alliances in densely populated urban areas for targeted investments in water and sanitation. The partnerships will work to reduce preventable morbidity and mortality among poor urban children and women through innovative solutions for improved water and sanitation practices and services. The first partnership will initially provide safe drinking water to approximately 31,250 households in slums across 25 wards in Bangalore, with potential to scale significantly.

· Ending Preventable Child and Maternal Deaths: India’s Minister of Health visited the United States in June 2014 to discuss U.S.-India cooperation in health, including India’s role as a co-convener of the Child Survival Call to Action. In support of the Child Survival Call to Action, USAID announced plans to partner with a leading Indian private sector management firm, bringing together the public and private sectors to scale up effective solutions to end preventable child and maternal deaths in India by 2035. The partnership reaffirms the commitments both governments have made in support of the global Call to Action. The new partnership supports national-level policy development and implementation across 184 highly burdened Indian districts and strengthened service provision in up to 11 states with high rates of child and maternal deaths. USAID is also working with India to highlight India’s achievements as a model for other countries to improve their health outcomes. Through the SHARE (South to South HIV-AIDS Resource Exchange) partnership, India’s successful HIV/AIDS prevention, care, support, and treatment efforts are being shared with African countries.

· Global Health Security Agenda: India and the United States plan to partner with other nations through the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) to accelerate progress toward a world safe and secure from infectious disease threats and to promote global health security as an international security priority.

· Health Research: The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has developed a robust relationship with India’s medical research community in the biomedical and behavioral health sciences. New and ongoing research partnerships focus on diabetes research, low-cost medical devices, and vaccine development. The Rotavac vaccine for rotavirus, developed through an innovative public-private partnership involving government, private sector, and academic partners, has entered the Indian market, where it has the potential to save the lives of thousands of children each year. The Department of Biotechnology within the Ministry of Science and Technology and NIH currently implement Indo-U.S. Collaborative Programs on Low-Cost Medical Devices, Vision Research, Brain Research, and Cancer Research.

· Antimicrobial Resistance: India and the United States share a concern about the emergence and spread of disease organisms resistant to medications from antimicrobial resistance (AMR). We are pursuing opportunities to collaborate on evidence-based actions at local, national, regional, and global levels to prevent AMR and ensure the continued availability of effective measures (e.g., antibiotics) for the treatment of microbial infections.

· Environmental and Occupational Health and Injury Prevention and Control: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Indian Council of Medical Research) are finalizing a Memorandum of Understanding on Environmental and Occupational Health and Injury Prevention and Control. The MOU would develop further cooperation in research efforts, education and training and capacity-building activities, in a number of focus areas including public health aspects of household and ambient air pollution, water quality and access, exposures to hazardous substances, strengthening of laboratory capacity, road safety and burn injuries.

· High-Energy Physics Cooperation and Accelerator Research and Development: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Indian Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) are working toward signing two project annexes under a DOE-DAE implementing agreement. The project annexes aim to facilitate and promote cooperation on accelerator R&D and related sciences to further our understanding of fundamental physics.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesperson
July 31, 2014
FACT SHEET: U.S.-India Trade and Economic Cooperation

The United States and India share a strong and growing economic relationship, driven by entrepreneurial and visionary individuals, institutions, and businesses in both countries. This engagement, including trade, education, cultural, and familial ties, has always been at the leading edge of the U.S.-India relationship and strategic partnership, and continues to expand. Our bilateral trade expanded from $19 billion in 2000 to $95 billion in 2013. U.S. goods exports to India totaled $35 billion last year, supporting an estimated 168,000 U.S. jobs. Cumulative Indian investment in the United States totaled $9 billion in 2012, supporting 100,000 jobs; U.S. investment into India exceeded $28 billion, and a survey of the largest U.S. employers in India indicates that U.S. investment supports half a million jobs in India. Ongoing government actions to facilitate investment in both directions and open new sectors to private investment will continue to accelerate the economic growth, development, and increased prosperity that our deep economic engagement has delivered to both societies.

· The U.S.-India Infrastructure Platform: The U.S.-India Infrastructure Platform is a collaborative effort between the United States and India, anchored by the two Governments and operated in concert with our private sectors, to promote U.S. private sector engagement in India’s infrastructure growth and modernization. This effort will develop concrete business opportunities through the deployment of cutting edge U.S. technologies to meet India’s infrastructure needs, including power, urbanization, shipping, freight transportation and other areas.

· U.S.-India CEO Forum: The U.S.-India CEO Forum is a unique gathering of CEOs and senior government officials that last met on July 12, 2013. The CEO Forum enables a forthright conversation, both about immediate policy issues to encourage greater trade and investment, as well as the longer term path for economic and business ties for our two countries. The Forum also provides an avenue for both sides to identify ways that public-private collaboration could fill gaps in the market that neither would, nor could, pursue alone. The CEO Forum has facilitated new collaborative initiatives in key areas such as cold chain, infrastructure financing, aviation, clean drinking water, and renewable energy.

· Indo-Pacific Economic Corridor (IPEC) Strategy: Complementing India’s Enhanced Look East Policy, the United States envisions an Indo-Pacific Economic Corridor that can help bridge South and Southeast Asia – where the Indian and Pacific Oceans converge and where trade has thrived for centuries. Fostering these types of connections – physical infrastructure, regulatory trade architecture, and human and digital connectivity – will create linkages all the way from Central Asia to Southeast Asia, via South Asia. A more integrated South Asia where markets, economies, and people connect is more likely to thrive and prosper. The United States is firmly committed to the security and prosperity of the Asian continent, and connectivity, energy security, and open markets can help to realize that objective. In May 2014, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs-sponsored Research Information System for Developing Countries Institute hosted an international conference on cross-border connectivity featuring government officials, multilateral bank representatives, and private sector firms, highlighting existing and future efforts to connect India with Southeast Asia. The United States was pleased to participate and will continue to engage in these efforts.

· Aviation Security Equipment Testing and Evaluation Program: Supporting the two countries’ interest in increasing collaboration in the critical aviation security arena, the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) is funding the first aviation security cooperation project under the U.S.-India Aviation Cooperation Program (ACP). The technical assistance effort, also supported by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and three member companies of the ACP, is designed to assist the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and India’s Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) to establish an Aviation Security Equipment Testing and Evaluation Program (ASETEP) to modernize India’s aviation security environment in alignment with international standards and practices. The program will help India’s civil aviation security authorities to develop clear standards for state-of-the-art aviation security equipment as well as build the technical capacity to test and certify needed systems that scan carry-on luggage, checked baggage and passengers. Under the program a delegation of Indian security officials will visit TSA testing labs focused on aviation security.

· Regional Women’s Entrepreneurship: The United States and India continue to partner to improve economic opportunities for women. The Partnership on Women’s Entrepreneurship in Clean Energy (wPOWER), a State Department and USAID initiative, is training a network of over 1,000 women clean energy entrepreneurs to provide clean energy solutions to over 200,000 rural households. Launched in December 2012, the South Asia Women’s Entrepreneurship Symposium (SAWES) initiative is promoting cross-border partnerships to improve access to finance, markets, and capacity-building for women entrepreneurs across South and Central Asia. USAID also supports the Indian Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) to provide vocational skills and leadership training to Afghan women. USAID is now expanding this initiative.

· Tourism, Travel, and Visas: In 2013, over 850,000 Indians visited the United States, and over one million Americans visited India, the largest group of foreign arrivals. The U.S. Mission in India has expanded its consular staffing and invested over $100 million in updating and expanding consular facilities to facilitate travel to the United States, processing ninety-seven percent of visa applications in one business day.

· Higher Education: Higher education is a vital part of our economic engagement. Indian students comprise the second-largest group of foreign students in the United States, with approximately 100,000 students studying in the United States in 2012-13. These students contribute over $3 billion to the U.S. economy every year, creating one American job for every three students. They advance innovation and research in our universities. With support from the U.S.-India Higher Education Dialogue, U.S. community colleges partner with Indian institutions to enhance economic opportunity in India through adoption of the community college education model and skills development best practices. The Higher Education Dialogue also creates enhanced opportunities for student and scholar mobility and faculty collaboration between the United States and India, as well as exchanges on technology-enabled learning. USAID supports the India-Support for Teacher Education Project which provides a three-month, customized training for 110 Indian teacher educators at Arizona State University’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, enabling the teacher educators to offer high quality training to Indian teachers upon their return.

· Education Research Partnerships: The 21st Century Knowledge Initiative supports partnerships between higher education institutions in both countries to strengthen teaching and research in priority fields such as energy, climate change, and public health. The United States and India have each pledged $5 million to this Initiative. The Fulbright-Nehru program has nearly tripled since 2009, with approximately 300 Indian and U.S. students and scholars participating annually, making it the largest Fulbright Scholar Program in the world. Since 1950, the United States-India Education Foundation (USIEF) has awarded approximately 9,600 Fulbright grants funded by the U.S. Department of State in a full range of academic disciplines. USIEF has also administered 8,600 other awards, including the U.S. Department of Education’s Fulbright-Hays and the East-West Center grants, for a total of over 18,000 awards in the last 64 years.

· Strengthening Best Practices in Manufacturing: Identifying mechanisms for sharing best practices is essential to promoting commercial cooperation between India and the United States. By sharing best practices in innovation and economic development strategies with India’s Ministry of Urban Development through the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NIST-MEP) and the Economic Development Administration (EDA), the U.S. Department of Commerce seeks to strengthen partnerships with the Government of India and the Indian business community, focusing on infrastructure development, manufacturing and supply chain integration, skills development and business climate. NIST-MEP and EDA will host visits by Indian senior level officials to its MEP centers and EDA investment sites as part of this effort.

· Investment Promotion: SelectUSA and the Export-Import Bank of India cemented a partnership on July 30th. Both organizations will work together to assist Indian companies and entrepreneurs as they seek to invest and create jobs in the United States. The U.S. Department of Commerce also expressed appreciation to the Indian investors who participated in the SelectUSA 2013 Investment Summit, and committed to working with Indian officials and industry associations to recruit a strong delegation from India for the March 2015 Investment Summit.

· The U.S.-India Commercial Dialogue: The Commercial Dialogue provides a forum in which both governments and the Indian and U.S. private sectors can collaborate on issues of mutual interest, thereby ensuring that our trade relationship continues to grow and diversify. The U.S. Department of Commerce and India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry have taken steps to renew the Commercial Dialogue for an additional two-year term until March 2016. Both sides share a strong interest in broadening the Dialogue engagement and are exploring new areas of cooperation, including encouraging the private sector to work with the governments on roundtables to promote innovation in advanced manufacturing.

· Trade Policy Forum: The Trade Policy Forum (TPF) enables the United States and India to engage on a wide range of policy issues impacting bilateral trade and investment. As part of an ongoing commitment to strengthen this dialogue, both governments hope to renew expert-level discussions on trade and investment policy issues of interest to the two countries such as intellectual property and investment in manufacturing. The TPF’s Private Sector Advisory Group (PSAG), composed of U.S. and Indian private sector leaders, plans to provide input to both governments.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesperson
July 31, 2014
FACT SHEET

U.S.-India Counterterrorism and Homeland Security Cooperation

Accelerating our partnership following the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks, the United States and India continue to expand their counterterrorism and homeland security cooperation, enhancing global as well as bilateral security through ongoing dialogues, capacity building initiatives, and multilateral efforts such as the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum. Together, our two countries are meeting the evolving security challenges of the 21st century.

U.S.-India Homeland Security Dialogue: The Department of Homeland Security and Ministry of Home Affairs plan to hold a third U.S.-India Homeland Security Dialogue to enhance homeland security cooperation and discuss building capacity in cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection, countering illicit finance, global supply chain security, megacity policing, and science and technology. These senior-level exchanges have reinforced our strategic homeland security partnership and enhanced operational cooperation in investigations, capacity building, and countering threats. Upcoming law enforcement engagement proposals include sharing lessons learned and best practices in SWAT team training and responding to mass casualty exercises, improving both nations’ capabilities to respond to terrorist incidents and natural disasters. In January 2014, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement repatriated to India three recovered stolen sand stone sculptures dating from the 11th century, valued at more than $1.5 million.

Homeland Security Technology: The U.S. Department of Commerce plans to create a Homeland Security subgroup under the bilateral High Technology Cooperation Group (HTCG), helping to facilitate increased access to homeland security-related technology. The HTCG, which includes an industry component, intends to meet in Washington, D.C. in fall 2014. Less than 0.02 percent of U.S. exports to India require an export license today, compared with 24 percent in 2004.

U.S.-India Counterterrorism Joint Working Group: State Department Coordinator for Counterterrorism Ambassador Tina Kaidanow and DHS Under Secretary Francis Taylor met with their counterparts in the Indian government to continue the Counterterrorism Working Group process, including continued exchange of senior experts through the coming year. The two sides held an in-depth exchange of views on common areas of interest and collaboration to further mutual U.S.-India counterterrorism goals. U.S. and Indian cooperative efforts include coordination in international fora including the UN and GCTF, and mutually agreed bilateral capacity building measures.

Law Enforcement Collaboration: Through ongoing cooperation and consultations between the State Department’s Office of the Legal Adviser, the U.S. Department of Justice and India’s Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of External Affairs, the United States and India are further strengthening Mutual Legal Assistance and improving cooperation on extradition in the interest of advancing justice. This includes ongoing efforts by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Investigative Agency to improve sharing of electronic evidence to combat cybercrime and mitigate counterterrorism threats.

Urban Policing: The Indian Government organized the first India-U.S. policing conference in New Delhi, December 2013. Bringing together U.S. and Indian police chiefs, federal, state, and local officials, from major metropolitan areas, the exchange included a focus on addressing gender-based violence and strategies for building effective partnerships between police and diaspora communities. From July 28-August 9, 2014, the International Association of Chiefs of Police is hosting a delegation of 90 senior police officials from India to participate in a study tour led by the International Association of Chiefs of Police, exchanging information on critical incident command, transnational crime, and emerging trends in policing.

Regional Safe Cities Program: USAID, state governments of India, and the government of Japan are partnering with UN Women to implement the Safe Cities program in New Delhi, creating safe urban spaces for women and girls by working with municipal leaders, law enforcement officials, and non-governmental organizations to monitor incidences of gender-based violence, strengthen systems to prevent and respond to this violence, and build women’s confidence in the justice system.

Facilitating Legitimate Travel: There are more than one million visits between the United States and India each year. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security continues to work with Indian partners to allow for Indian participation in DHS’s Global Entry program. The trusted traveler program enables expedited entry to frequent travelers, significantly reducing wait times. The United States has Global Entry partnerships in place with a very limited number of countries.