US sees India beyond Af-Pak

Viewing India as a “rising global power”, the United States on Thursday pitched for a greater role for New Delhi in international affairs and in meeting challenges in South Asia, including bringing stability to Afghanistan.

Launching the first-ever Indo-US Strategic Dialogue along with the external affairs minister, Mr S.M. Krishna, the US secretary of state, Ms Hillary Clinton, said America felt India had not “fully embraced” its role in regional and global affairs and indicated support for India’s aspirations for a permanent seat in the expanded UN Security Council.

She sought to dispel “doubts” that the US sees India “only or mainly in the context of Afghanistan and Pakistan” and that America “will hasten our departure from Afghanistan, leaving India to deal with the aftermath”.

They discussed Afghanistan and Pakistan and ways to step up cooperation. “India is a rising global power and already a regional power in Asia. Thus more the need to work closely with India to meet the immediate challenges in the neighbourhood,” she said.

Mr Krishna noted that the institution of the Strategic Dialogue was a reflection of the deepening and broadening of our relations between the two countries. “We both have an abiding interest in a stable international order and in the maintenance of peace,” he said.