Washington, DC: India and the United States will hold their first strategic dialogue today in Washington. Foreign Minister SM Krishna will meet Secretary of State Hillary Clinton later today, against the backdrop of several prickly issues straining ties between the two countries.
In a rare gesture, President Obama plans to attend a reception for Krishna at the State Department. But what New Delhi will be hoping is that these talks go beyond symbolism.
"We will discuss many areas in which we have shared interests, ranging from countering terrorism and extremism, advancing nuclear security, working to secure the global commons, seeking to build a developed and cooperative Asia, and succeeding in Afghanistan to dialogues for co-operation in science and technology, research for clean energy and monsoon prediction, health and education, and a dialogue on women empowerment. That will be an important occasion for us to reflect on the remarkable journey that our two great democracies have embarked upon, and to set our sights on new milestones," said Krishna.
On the eve of the first-ever Indo-US Strategic Dialogue, India said it would be an important occasion for both the countries to set their sights on "new milestones" as they share interests ranging from counter-terrorism to nuclear security to Afghanistan.
Krishna also said the country was committed to putting in place a nuclear liability regime by getting the Nuclear Liability Bill passed in Parliament.
"I have received some feedback on areas of particular interest to members present here - foremost is the implementation of the historic Civil Nuclear Agreement between our two countries signed in 2008," he said.
"We are well within the agreed timelines, of course. The Government is committed to put in place a nuclear liability regime. We look forward to US companies investing in India. Many of you are in dialogue with our companies already. We would like it to be as robust a partnership as we have both envisioned," he added.
The Nuclear Liability Bill, which is crucial in the implementation of the Indo-US nuclear deal, is being strongly opposed by parties like BJP and Left. They are opposed to the bill in the present form and had even disrupted Parliament when it was introduced last month.
Pitching for a robust two-way trade in advanced technology products with the US, Krishna said it has offered guarantees that sensitive technology would not be diverted in contravention of US regulations.
He sought strengthening of bilateral cooperation in the field of innovation and advanced technology.
"We have given a number of written assurances that US technology will enjoy the level of security stipulated by the relevant US laws and not be diverted in contravention of US regulations," Krishna said.
When asked about the inability or unwillingness of Pakistan to bring 26/11 to book, Krishna told NDTV, "We are trying to build bridges with Pakistan also. I am due to go to Islamabad in July and we are hoping to be able to eliminate the trust deficit that we feel there is between the two countries. And high level visits are a very important part of trying to do that."
(With PTI inputs)