Global Indian News
New York: The bonhomie and bonding between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump was quite evident, but the real story coming from the New York meeting was …
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A fortnight after the audacious air strike on one of the biggest Pakistan-based terror camps, the US joined hands with India to intensify diplomatic pressure on Pakistan by jointly asking …
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US President Donald Trump has made many positive remarks about India, has made several complaints against the Chinese policies and has shown his determination to crush Islamic extremism.
Since about 20 percent of organisations, designated as terrorist organisations by the US, happen to be located in the Af-Pak region, the US-Pakistan relations cannot be trouble-free.
The strategic scenario in the region provides a fertile ground for India-US ties to flourish, but Washington and New Delhi need to tread carefully, keeping in mind each other’s concerns.
Current signals indicate that the Indo-US ties under the Trump Administration will face no major difficulties in further boosting the emerging strategic partnership between the two countries. But it is better to wait and watch in view of the paradigm change, expected in the ways the US engages the world, under the Trump Presidency.
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India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with US President Donald Trump on June 26 is one of the most keenly awaited events in the diplomatic calendars of the world’s biggest democracy and its most powerful one. Compared to Mr Modi’s first US visit as prime minister in 2014, that included an impressive rally at Madison Square Garden with legions of cheering Indian-Americans in attendance, this time round, the White House meeting takes centre stage. This suggests that the Indian leader wants to focus more on establishing a firm foundation for New Delhi to work with the relatively new US administration.
During his two-day sojourn in the US, Mr Modi is expected to discuss a wide range of bilateral issues — from economic and defence cooperation to Indo-Pakistan relations and immigration. But of especial significance, perhaps, would be the talks on regional security and terrorism. Both Washington and New Delhi have their own reasons for ensuring continued stability in South and Central Asia. While the two sides have often reiterated the need to espouse a zero-tolerance stance towards terrorism, Mr Modi would do well to impress upon the US president that no discussion on counter-terrorism would be meaningful without considering the role of Pakistan in supporting terror groups.
India’s strategy of isolating Pakistan in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack has struck a powerful chord in the US. A day after US Secretary of State John Kerry chastised Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and asked him to prevent terrorists from using his country as safe havens, two American legislators introduced a legislation in the US Congress to designate Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism.
The bill, H.R 6069 or the Pakistan State Sponsor of Terrorism Designation Act, calls upon the US administration to make a formal assessment on the matter within four months of its passage.
The move to brand Pakistan as a terrorist state is seen as a triumph of Indian diplomacy as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj heads to the US on a concerted drive to corner Pakistan on account of its alleged complicity in the Uri terror attack in north Kashmir, which killed 18 Indian soldiers.
The bill is seen as a huge setback for Mr Sharif as he gears up to make a speech in the UNGA, in which he is expected to highlight India’s alleged human rights abuses in Jammu and Kashmir.
The US’ admonition of Pakistan underscores Washington’s growing wariness with Islamabad’s systematic duplicity on terrorism, and will bolster India’s drive to isolate Pakistan in the international community.
Marking a meeting of minds on a host of pressing issues, India and the US have decided to step their counter-terror cooperation, with Washington strongly backing India by renewing call to Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai and Pathankot terror attacks to justice.
The second Strategic and Commercial Dialogue between India and the US ended on a high note, with both sides upbeat about the blossoming of bilateral relations in all spheres and underlining their resolve to take this strategic partnership to new heights.
The US’ robust backing on India’s concerns over Pakistan-sponsored terrorism was music to New Delhi’s ears. “The US supports all efforts to brining the perpetrators of the Mumbai and Pathankot attacks to justice… terror is terror no matter where it comes from,” said US Secretary of State John Kerry in New Delhi on August 30, after wide-ranging talks with India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. The two strategic partners also reiterated their resolve to intensify counter-terror cooperation. They will intensify intelligence sharing and specifically “work for the early operationalization of an agreement on exchanging information on known or suspected terrorists,” said Mrs Swaraj. The two sides also signed a framework agreement on combating cyber crimes.