As US president Barack Obama prepares to visit India early next month, former official of the George W. Bush administration feels that India’s growing weightage in the Asian region is in America’s interest.

“As India is transforming and looking beyond South Asia, there is American interest as India is now an important economic power with high growth even at the time of financial crisis,” Evan A. Frigenbaum, former deputy assistant secretary of state for South Asia, told Governance Now in an exclusive interview.
He added that India has stamped its authority in the G-20 nations. This shows how India is rising economically which is in the US interest. But he highlights not to expect big ideas in this trip.

“Export control is an area where change in the American policy can bring both countries closer. Lifting the hi-tech sanctions against India is one, where I only see big idea from president Obama in this trip if it happens,” he said.

Removing the sanctions will allow India to access US dual – use technology and equipment both in conventional and nuclear purposes. Indian organisations like the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and others are at the US entities list.

Frigenbaum, who also serves as an adjunct senior fellow for Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), a Washington-based foreign policy think tank, feels that Obama inherited good relationship with India which he should now use to reduce disagreements. “This visit is a good scope for Obama to establish like Bush did in 2006 India’s visit,” he said. But he would be surprised if Obama talks on the outsourcing issue.

The challenge for Obama, he says, would be to turn common interest issues into complimentary policies and deal with strategic challenges in India’s neighbourhood.

The mood for talks is positive yet experts are not clear what specifics may come out of this visit. “The trajectory of the relations is very good but I think the main question is that how can US-India build on that one at global level and regional level.”

But relationship on the economics side has not lived up to the expectations. “There are some investment caps in India in sectors that are of greatest interest to the American companies,” Frigenbaum commented, “Infrastructure is a huge challenge in India. I think infrastructure finance would be a big issue where the US companies would be interested.”

During US treasury secretary Timothy Geithner’s visit in April, India had invited US companies to invest to meet its vast infrastructure needs.

However, a new report released by the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), titled “Natural Allies: A blueprint for the future of U.S.-India relations,” points that the liability bill has put a question mark on the civilian nuclear agreement signed by the India and the US.

“Failure to complete the steps necessary to implement the agreement, however, severely risks damaging the rest of the relationship. Consequently, the US and India must press vigorously for rapid implementation of the agreement,” the report noted. It, however, mentioned that during Obama’s visit both nations should give concrete meaning to the phrase ‘strategic partnership’.

This report is prepared by the former under-secretary of state for political affairs Nicholas Burns, the former deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage and scholar Richard Fontaine. Burns and Armitage both served in the Bush administration. Burns was instrumental in India-U.S. nuclear agreement.