Washington, June 30: Former US Ambassador to India, Kenneth I. Juster, emphasized that the true strength of India-US relations lies in the robust connections between the people of both nations. He traced the evolution of these ties from the early American consulate in India to the current significant global strategic partnership.
Speaking at the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) Leadership Summit, Juster noted that long before the modern strategic partnership, India and the US had been connected in numerous meaningful ways for centuries.
Juster stated, “No two countries geographically as distant as the US and India are as closely linked.” He highlighted that shortly after opening its mission in Paris, the US established two of its earliest diplomatic missions in India, in Calcutta in 1792 and in Madras in 1794.
He also recalled that then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt pressured Britain for India’s independence and that the US established relations with India’s interim government in September 1946, more than 11 months before India’s formal independence.
According to Juster, relations accelerated after India’s economic reforms in 1991, but faced a setback following India’s nuclear tests in 1998. However, discussions between then-Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott and India’s then-Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh helped restore ties, paving the way for then-President Bill Clinton’s visit to India in 2000.
He noted that former President George W. Bush sought to transform relations between the world’s oldest and largest democracies, focusing on high technology and the civil nuclear agreement as central to this shift.
Juster remarked that successive administrations have continued to build on this foundation. He referenced efforts during former President Barack Obama’s tenure to elevate India as a major defense partner, the initiation of the 2+2 ministerial dialogue during the Trump administration, and the elevation of Quad meetings to the leadership level under President Joe Biden.
He mentioned that the second Trump administration continued to work on defense cooperation and energy security with India, while also attempting to finalize a bilateral trade agreement.
Reflecting on trade, Juster noted that in 2001, when he served as Under Secretary of Commerce, the mutual trade in goods and services was $19 billion, which has now surged to nearly $250 billion. Both nations aim to reach $500 billion by the end of this decade.
He stated, “Completing a trade agreement would greatly facilitate this. The India-US partnership spans nearly every area of human endeavor, including defense, non-proliferation, counter-terrorism, trade, investment, science and technology, healthcare, energy, agriculture, education, space, and oceans.”
Juster emphasized the importance of the relationship between the people of both countries, stating, “In many ways, this is the secret that keeps us together, even through the ups and downs of government relations.”
He cited the “Howdy Modi” event in Houston in 2019 and the “Namaste Trump” event in Ahmedabad in 2020 as examples of public goodwill, noting that over 5 million Indian Americans significantly impact the US economy and society.
The former ambassador praised the USISPF and its leadership for their role in promoting the partnership, stating that the organization and its business leaders have been crucial in this relationship.
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