Reflections on U.S.-India Relations

In a talk at the Elliott School's Sigur Center for Asian Studies on March 12, 2008, Indian Ambassador to the United States Ronen Sen said the Indian-U.S. relationship is developing at an "unprecedented pace." The talk, part of the Center's India Initiative, also featured respondents who reflected on the views of Democrats and Republicans on U.S.-Indian relations.

Amb. Sen, whose post was recently extended for another year, said both countries cooperate in a variety of areas from civil nuclear energy to HIV/AIDS to economic activity. He added that each presidential candidate, regardless of his or her party, supports a relationship with India, which was not true several years ago. This statement framed the discussion following Amb. Sen's talk, which included responses from Ashley Tellis, a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and Amb. Karl Inderfurth.

Both respondents agreed on several points, including the importance of granting permanent membership to India in the United Nations Security Council. Inderfurth and Tellis also underscored the significance of the two countries' economic relationship.

Tellis, a foreign policy advisor to Sen. John McCain's campaign, said a robust India is not only good for the United States, but for the entire world. " India matters, because it is large and important in its own right," he said, adding that Washington views India as "a mature, democratic state," rather than a convenient ally to facilitate containing China.

Amb. Inderfurth, who served as assistant secretary of state for South Asian affairs in former President Bill Clinton's administration, agreed with Tellis about the prospects for a "power triangle" that would see the United States allying with India to combat a rising China.

"There are other ways to deal with China," he said, including inviting both China and India to join the G8, thus creating the G10.

Like Tellis, Inderfurth echoed several areas where India and the United States share values and goals, adding that education was one of the areas where further cooperation can add "more context to our relationship."

Tellis added that the United States and India both have a stake in addressing "the rise of radical movements." India, the world's most populous democracy, has long witnessed violence based on extremist and separatist movements.

"That future is only ours to lose," said Tellis of Indian-U.S. relations, adding that an unsuccessful relationship would be due to a lack of imagination. "There will be no other explanation for failure."

The India Initiative aims to place the Sigur Center for Asian Studies at the forefront of scholarship and analysis of U.S.-India relations and U.S. foreign policy on the subcontinent, said Deepa Ollapally, associate director of the Sigur Center. "It can also help shape future policy, whether the Democrats or the Republicans come to power."

Ollapally added that the Sigur Center will launch or expand a broad range of high level conferences, policy dialogues, student scholarships, visiting fellowships, new courses, specialized lecture series, and a professorship in India studies under the India Initiative. "We believe that the Center's well-known programs on China, Japan, and Korea will provide an ideal framework for studying contemporary India in Asia, and on the global stage," she said.

Amb. Sen's remarks were covered widely in the media, including stories in The Washington Times, The Hindu, Mangalorean, Thaindian News, Sify News, and The Telegraph (Calcutta).

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