U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke on Monday said India had become a “crucial security partner” of his country and a force for global stability.
Addressing a business meeting for the 24-member delegation organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here, Mr. Locke said India had joined hands with the U.S. in fighting terrorism, assisting in reconstruction of Afghanistan, supporting global non-proliferation efforts in Iran and conducting more joint military exercises with America.
Seeking opening up of more sectors for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Mr. Locke said if hindrances on investing in India were resolved, the country would see a lot more American firms coming in, creating more jobs.
“We believe that there are mutually beneficial opportunities if U.S. companies can invest here, open operations and hire people. This will help in improving lives of Indians.”
“We have concerns about protection of intellectual property rights here. On a discreet level we are concerned on non-tariff barriers and the limitation on direct foreign investment to even on tariff imposed on a host of services.”
Stating that the U.S. supported India's case for becoming a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, Mr. Locke said the Indo-U.S. civil nuclear agreement would help India power its future.
Entity list
During the last two weeks, the U.S. Commerce Department removed the last remaining nine Indian defence and aerospace companies from the so-called entity list.
“It is a step that has made it possible for the 24 companies with me this week to explore new avenues of cooperation and commerce in India. And as the United States has reached out its hand in partnership, India has reciprocated,” Mr. Locke said.
Spelling out the roadblocks to development and growth of the Indian economy, Mr. Locke said only 2 per cent of the roads were paved; the electric grid, water, communications and transportation infrastructure all had to be greatly expanded and upgraded.
The future investment demands were staggering. The McKinsey Global Institute projected that India would need $1.2 trillion in additional capital investment by 2030 to build 2.5 billion square metres of new paved roads and 7,400 km of new metros and subways.
