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    Narendra Modi's trip to US: India talking to US for strong statement on terror from Pakistan

    Synopsis

    This along with a firm commitment to join forces in the Asia-Pacific to balance aggressive Chinese intent in the region, is likely to form cornerstone of the meeting between Modi and Donald Trump.

    Narendra Modi's trip to US: India talking to US for strong statement on terror from Pakistan
    NEW DELHI: India is in last-minute deliberations with the United States ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to thrash out a strong statement against cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan.

    This, along with a firm commitment to join forces in the Asia-Pacific to balance aggressive Chinese intent in the region, is likely to form cornerstone of the strategic message from the first summit meeting between Modi and US President Donald Trump. Foreign secretary S Jaishankar is already in Washington conducting these conversations with the top brass of the Trump Administration.

    The statement on Pakistan, though articulated in different ways in the past, is crucial from an Indian standpoint because past three administrations in the US have had a tendency to be soft on Pakistan in their initial years with a hope to change Islamabad’s worldview.

    “By the time they are in their second term or last couple of years of their first term, they have come to agree with our view. So, we would be keen to know whether the Trump administration will draw away from this routine,” an insider told ET.

    wash

    The joint statement, which is still in the works, will broadly seek to emphasise the continuity from the Obama administration, particularly on key strategic issues like underlining Washington’s unflinching support to New Delhi’s application for membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Similarly, a word of support on India’s aspirations to become a permanent member of the United National Security Council is also expected.

    To this end, the two sides will reaffirm their defence partnership, underlining the fact that business in sector has shown dramatic growth in the past few years to move from almost nothing to $15 billion today. Commercial announcements are also anticipated on the margins of the PM’s visit.

    From the US side, a source said, there was pressure on India to ease market access to American farm products. Agriculture barriers have historically been a sensitive issue on the trade side of the bilateral relationship.

    While climate change is set to be dropped from the statement, officials said, there will be content related to clean energy partnerships given that the Trump administration is quite open to exploring this as an economic opportunity.

    On this count, India is hoping to reopen the conversation on clean coal technologies, an aspect on which the Obama administration had a problem, saying that it conflicted with the larger climate change agenda.

    Besides this, India will raise the H-1B visa issue and inform the Trump administration on the data supporting the case that Indian talent is not draining away American jobs.


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    ( Originally published on Jun 23, 2017 )
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    Subscribe to The Economic Times Prime and read the ET ePaper online.

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