India and US should view the events in Indo-Pacific more cautiously, Biswa

New Delhi/Washington: India and the United States should view the Indo-Pacific sector’s dangerous developments more cautiously. India and the United States will have to do this if peace, prosperity and diversity in the sector has to preserve. Along with this, major challenges are posed before the economy of both countries due to the Coronavirus pandemic. It is not easy to face these challenges, but Nisha Biswal expressed confidence that it will be possible to overcome these challenges because of the cooperation between India and the United States. US-India Business Council (USIBC) President and former Assistant Secretary of State in the United States, seems to have underlined the importance of cooperation between India and the United States.

Biswal was speaking at a function organised on the 94th birth anniversary of former Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Indian foreign ministry had organised this function. Biswal indicated the Chinese threat to the peace, stability and diversity in the Indo-Pacific sector by mentioning the Chinese domination activities in the Indo-Pacific sector. Biswal clarified that the India-US cooperation will prove vital for overcoming the crisis created by the Chinese activities. India-US cooperation will prove extremely important in resolving the complex problems posed before the economies of India and the United States, against the background of the Coronavirus crisis.

Soon there will be a change of guard in the United States; Joe Biden will take over as the US President. Talks have started as to what will the India related policy of the United States, after that. Nisha Biswal has expressed confidence that the year 2021 will take the India-US relations to a new height. Biswal said that administration of President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will further strengthen the ties with the partner countries.

The India-US strategic partnership specially developed during the tenure of President Trump. Biswal referred to the two-plus-two talks, the QUAD cooperation, between India, the United States, Japan and Australia and the strong defence cooperation between India and the United States. But Biswal pointed out that while the defence cooperation became stronger. Moreover, the trade relations between the two countries did not gain a boost. Biswal expressed an expectation that the cooperation on the geopolitical level between the two countries must be on a solid foundation of economic cooperation.

Hence, in 2021, both countries will focus on this matter. Besides, the new year will lay a new foundation for the economic cooperation between the two countries. Biswal claimed that a trade agreement of a minor nature is expected to be signed between the two countries in this year. Discussions regarding a trade agreement were already underway, since the last few months. It was then revealed that this agreement would not be finalised till the new administration took over power in the United States. Biswal seems to be indicating that the Biden administration will be operational soon. After that, the discussions regarding the agreement will gain momentum.

Although President Trump was a friend of India, he adopted anti-India stand on certain trade issues. This had its effects on bilateral trade cooperation. Indian analysts are expressing hope that the Biden administration will not make such mistakes. Therefore, the analysts are predicting that Biden may prove to be better for India than Trump.