SnipBriefing on U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue
Robert O. Blake, Jr.
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of South and Central Asian AffairsWashington, DC
May 28, 2010Let me just briefly describe the schedule. Most of the delegations will be arriving on June 2nd – I’m sorry, on June 1st. On June 2nd, we will have both private sector and government activities. The U.S.-India Business Council will be hosting its 35th annual meeting. Our – Mr. Summers, Larry Summers, will be addressing that, as will our Secretary of Education. And then on the government-to-government level, Under Secretary Burns – Bill Burns, our Under Secretary of Political Affairs – and his counterpart, Foreign Secretary Rao, will oversee a very wide-ranging foreign policy dialogue that will cover Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Middle East, probably China, and many other topics.
On June 3rd, we will have the main strategic dialogue chaired by the Secretary and her counterpart, External Affairs Minister Krishna. I think what’s notable about this is that it’ll be the first time that our two governments are going to have really a whole-of-government conversation about not so much what we’ve accomplished, but to look ahead about what we can accomplish, and particularly look ahead to the President’s visit sometime this fall to India.
We will have, really, two sessions. We’ll have a plenary session that will cover a lot of the – all the bilateral issues that we’re working on – counterterrorism, export controls and high technology, economics and finance, infrastructure, education, energy, climate change. And the purpose of that is really, again, to look broadly at the relationships to try to break down some of these stovepipes that we’ve seen and think creatively and strategically about the new opportunities before us in this relationship.According to this article, the President will also attend this reception, and that will be unusual.
Then over lunch, the Secretary and External Affairs Minister Krishna will have a discussion on both the global issues that I mentioned, but again come back to some of the important regional issues, particularly Afghanistan and Pakistan, that I discussed earlier.
Later in the day, there will be a reception that the Secretary will host to honor the Indian delegation, but also to include many of the members of the Indian diaspora and other people who contribute so much to our relations. We’re very proud of the 2.5 million Indian Americans who are there, who really do provide a unique bridge for the United States with our friends in India. We’re also very proud of the hundred thousand-plus Indian students that are here studying in the United States, the largest single group of foreign students. And again, we think that this education bill that’s now pending in the Indian parliament will help to broaden even further the education cooperation in that area.
Obama to attend Clinton's reception for Krishna
At the end of next weekend, our Hillary will be traveling to Latin America and the Caribbean again according to this press release.
Secretary Clinton Travel to Latin America and the Caribbean
Philip J. Crowley
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Public Affairs
Washington, DC
May 28, 2010
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel to Peru, Ecuador, Colombia and Barbados from June 6-10 to participate in the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) and consult with our regional partners on issues of shared interest.
On June 6-8 in Peru, Secretary Clinton will participate in the General Assembly of the Organization of American States General Assembly, the Western Hemisphere’s premier multilateral organization. The Secretary will travel to Ecuador on June 8 and then on to Colombia and she will meet with government leaders in both countries. In Barbados on June 9, the Secretary will meet with leaders of Caribbean nations to discuss issues of mutual interest.
