[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 33 (Wednesday, March 22, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1588-S1589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       PRESIDENT'S TRIP TO INDIA

  Mr. GRAMS. Mr. President, I rise to speak in support of President 
Clinton's trip to India. For too long, the cold war, and India's 
leadership of the non-aligned movement, strained what should have been 
the natural bond between our two great democracies. The end of the cold 
war has now brought us together. India is a true friend to the United 
States in a region where respect for democracy is rare.
  India has made great strides since achieving independence. Literacy 
has doubled, life expectancy has doubled, and infant mortality has been 
more than halved. However, India recognizes that commitment to 
democracy must be accompanied by free-market principles in order for 
prosperity to flourish. India's initial pursuit of socialist economic 
policies, including nationalizing production, subsidizing industries, 
and raising tarriffs and other trade barriers, while imposing high 
taxes, caused its economy and its people to suffer.
  With the end of the cold war, India's experiment with a centralized 
economic system is waning. India is starting to liberalize the economy, 
prompting foreign investment and reducing barriers to trade. The 
results are encouraging: India's growth rate, which had been stuck at 3 
percent, is now exceeding 6 percent, and the outlook is promising for 
further improvement. While a commitment to socialism may still be 
enshrined in its Constitution, the economic reforms India is embracing 
are clearly leading the nation in a positive, new direction. For 
example, India's prowess in the high-technology sector makes it an able 
partner in that area. The recent decision to open its insurance and 
telecommunication sectors to foreign investors is emblematic of the 
kind of changes that will enable India to achieve its potential.
  Mr. President, the only shadow over President Clinton's visit is the 
eruption of violence in Kashmir. Indian and Pakistani troops started 
exchanging

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heavy artillery fire along the disputed border a day ahead of his 
arrival in the region. While Kashmir has been a source of conflict 
between India and Pakistan for nearly a half century, the recent 
nuclear and ballistic missile tests by India and Pakistan have 
compelled the international community to increase pressure on the 
parties to resolve this dispute. There has been a recognition of the 
very real danger that Kashmir could become the ``flashpoint'' which 
sparks a wider regional war. I hope President Clinton uses this visit 
to encourage officials of India and Pakistan, and representatives of 
the people of Jammu and Kashmir, to begin an official dialogue.
  Mr. President, there is an Indian saying that, ``it is the spirit of 
the quest that determines its outcome.'' The President's trip is an 
important symbol of the renewed spirit of cooperation between the 
United States and India. I look forward to the achievements we will 
reach together, as both partners and friends, in the next half century.

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