India is a major foreign policy priority for US: Former envoy

RICHARD RAHUL VERMA, EXUS AMBASSADOR TO INDIA, SAID CREDIT FOR STRONG TIES BETWEEN THE TWO NATIONS GOES TO PM NARENDRA MODI AND EXPRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

Trump administration has recognised India as a major foreign policy priority, a former top American diplomat has said, noting that the credit for strong ties between the two nations goes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former President Barack Obama.

“I do think India has been recognised as a major foreign policy priority (in the Trump Administration) and one that from the president on down, people are vested in, and that’s very encouraging,” Richard Rahul Verma, the former US Ambassador to India, told PTI. “The over all trajectory of the relationship has been quite good,” he said.

Verma, 48, is currently the vice chairman of The Asia Group, a strategy and capital advisory group based in Washington DC.

“As you know, in the last two to three years of the Obama administration we made a lot of progress and all the credit goes to Prime Minister Modi and (former) President Obama. We were doing things in so many different areas, so many different dialogues, but with really tangible results. I think for people in both countries and it was our hope that progress would continue,” he said.

The former envoy played a key in strengthening US-India ties during his tenure in the Obama Administration.

Terming ties with India as the single most important for the United States in this century, Verma said, “We should not just assume that because things are going well, we can let things be on autopilot.”

“This is the kind of relationship that really matters to our col- lective futures and it really takes a lot of time and energy,” he said.

In his first post-Ambassadorial interview, Verma said he thinks that the meeting between the President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June was good.

“A solid joint statement, I think was a re-affirmation of a lot of the priorities that we were focused on in the prior administration,” he said.

He said he would love to the two countries developing their relationship in terms of investment in the defence sector.

“It’s important that India and the United States have the kind of defence relationship and that we develop the kind of advanced technologies together that allows India to have the edge in contested domains, whether that’s on land, in air, on the sea, in outer space or cyberspace. I think it’s really important that India have those capabilities,” he said.

Verma hoped that the US will “really pursue” the Major Defence Partner status granted to India, which is completely brand new and unique.