US President Barack Obama today announced he would visit India in November, acknowledging that country was a rising and responsible global power “indispensable” to a future American strategy.
Obama, in his address in front of a select audience at a reception hosted by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in honour of the External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, also said the relationship between the US and India was “fundamentally unique”.
George W Bush was the last US President to visit India, in 2006.
Obama was making a rare visit to the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department to attend a reception for a visiting foreign minister. Krishna was in Washington for the Indo-US Strategic Dialogue.
As of now his travel dates to India has been tentatively scheduled from November 7 to November 10, a senior administration official said.
Meanwhile, India and the US today ended their first Cabinet-level Strategic Dialogue and vowed to consult each other closely on issues like Afghanistan and terrorism, remaining “sensitive” to each other’s interests.
“Minister Krishna and Secretary Clinton reiterated their shared goal of advancing security and stability across Asia, in particular, through the emergence of an open, balanced and inclusive architecture of cooperation in the region,” said a joint statement issued at the end of their Strategic Dialogue.
Obama, who ignored protocol to attend a reception for External Affairs Minister S M Krishna by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department, said US’ relations with India were at the highest of priorities for his administration and for “me personally” as President.
He announced that he will visit India in November, saying the country is a rising and responsible global power indispensable to a future American strategy.
