India-US ties will be one of the defining partnerships of the 21st century: John Kerry.
With just a few days left for Obama to leave the White House, Obama administration has identified strengthening of US-India relations as one of its key achievements.
The progress made by India and the US in foreign policy and defense sector during the period of Obama Administration was highlighted by Secretary of State John Kerry, who said the next administration should continue to work to try and improve the vast area of cooperation between the two democracies.
Kerry, while outlining the State Departments achievements during the eight years of Obama Administration said: “This (India-US ties) will be one of the defining partnerships of the 21st century, and the United States should continue to work with India to expand the vast areas of cooperation between our nations and our peoples.”
President Obama has directed his cabinet members to create similar documents highlighting the achievements made by the respective departments during the last eight years.
The exit-memo of Secretary of State John Kerry says the United States has had a very productive relationship with India in fields of commerce, defense, health, counter-terrorism, education, medicine, cyber security, climate etc.
“As the world’s oldest democracy and the world’s largest democracy, the United States and India share common values that bind us together, and our relationship has evolved from one with great potential to one that is achieving great things for both countries and the world,” Kerry said.
The exit-memo of the outgoing US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter underlines the progress made during the eight years of Obama administration in deepening the defense relationship with India. According to Carter, both the countries have established “closer tie†under Obama Administration.
Carter also added that it was during this period that India was recognized by the US as a “Major Defense Partnerâ€, thus facilitating major Defense Technology Trade Initiatives.
In his own exit-memo that reckons the achievements made by his administration during the eight years in office, Obama says he was able to lift the United States from the slumber caused by the economic recession of 2008. He also says that as he leaves the Oval office for his successor to occupy, there is a sense of pride for having made the United State prosperous than ever.
“Eight years ago, America faced a moment of peril unlike any we’d seen in decades,” he said.
“A spiraling financial crisis threatened to plunge an economy in recession into a deep depression. The very heartbeat of American manufacturing — the American auto industry — was on the brink of collapse. In some communities, nearly one in five Americans were out of work. Nearly 180,000 American troops were serving in harm’s way in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the mastermind of the worst terror attack on American soil remained at large. And on challenges from health care to climate change, we’d been kicking the can down the road for way too long,” Obama wrote.
“But in the depths of that winter, on January 20, 2009, I stood before you and swore a sacred oath. I told you that day that the challenges we faced would not be met easily or in a short span of time — but they would be met. And after eight busy years, we’ve met them — because of you. Eight years later, an economy that was shrinking at more than eight percent is now growing at more than three percent,” he added.