[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 154 (Thursday, November 8, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H7943-H7945]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 WELCOMING PRIME MINISTER OF INDIA ON OCCASION OF HIS VISIT TO UNITED 
                                 STATES

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee 
on International Relations be discharged from further consideration of 
the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 264) expressing the sense of 
Congress to welcome the Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, 
on the occasion of his visit to the United States, and to affirm that 
India is a valued friend and partner and an important ally in the 
campaign against international terrorism, and ask for its immediate 
consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the concurrent resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, and I will 
not object, I yield to my friend, the gentleman from New York, so that 
he may explain the reasons for moving this resolution immediately to 
the floor.
  Mr. GILMAN. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Lantos), the ranking minority member on the Committee on International 
Relations, for crafting H. Con. Res. 264, a resolution expressing the 
sense of the Congress to welcome the Prime Minister of India, Atal 
Bihari Vajpayee, on the occasion of his visit to our Nation, and to 
affirm that India is a valued friend and partner and an important ally 
in the campaign against international terrorism.
  India and the United States share a common destiny. Our people thrive 
on democracy, the rule of law and the right to freely worship God, and 
our governments understand that these rights and freedoms are essential 
for our civilizations to flourish.
  Mr. Speaker, this past Monday in New Delhi, Secretary of Defense 
Donald Rumsfeld and India's Minister of Defense, George Fernandes, met 
and agreed to expand and intensify our mutual cooperation in the war 
against international terrorism. We are delighted that India and the 
United States are moving closer to becoming allies in every sense of 
the word.
  An alliance between our Nation and India could specifically be used 
to promote democratic governments in the region and to combat drugs and 
terrorism. And our Nation appreciates the immeasurable contributions to 
our society made by the more than 1 million Americans of Indian origin.
  This past summer, Russian President Putin and Chinese President Jiang 
Zemin gave each other a bear hug and signed a so-called ``friendship 
treaty.'' We are now embarking on a similar friendship with India and 
Prime Minister Vajpayee.

                              {time}  1400

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I am 
delighted to speak in support of this resolution which welcomes Prime 
Minister Vajpayee of India to the United States and expresses the deep 
appreciation of the American people for the strong and immediate 
support India has provided us at the time of the events of September 
11.
  Many of our colleagues do not realize, Mr. Speaker, that India also 
lost over 200 of its own citizens in the dreadful attack on the World 
Trade Center. As a matter of fact, while this terrible terrorist act 
was a first for us, I think it is important for all of us to understand 
that some of our democratic friends and allies have been subjected to 
terrorist attacks for many years. Our democratic friend, India, and our 
democratic friend, the State of Israel, have been subjected to 
terrorism for over half a century. Following our tragic event on 
September 11, on October 7 terrorists attacked the Parliament House in 
Kashmir claiming the lives of scores of innocent Indian citizens.
  Mr. Speaker, it is important to realize that today we have the 
pleasure of welcoming to our Congress the Prime Minister of the largest 
democracy on the face of this planet. There are 1 billion people in 
India, Mr. Speaker. Many were doubtful years ago that a society, at 
that time quite poor, in many ways undeveloped, could maintain a 
political democracy. There was a lot of skepticism as to whether you 
could have a viable political democracy with 1 billion people of 
enormous ethnic variety and with hundreds of millions of those people 
living in abject poverty.
  India has proven the pessimists wrong. India today is the fourth 
largest economy on the face of this planet, and it is the largest 
political democracy on this planet. Political elections unfold, 
governments change peacefully, as they do here in the United States.
  A great deal has been made in recent times, since September 11, of 
our building a global coalition against international terrorism; and we 
all support the effort of the President, the Secretary of State and 
others to move along these lines. But I think it is important to 
realize that some Members of this coalition share our values. India is 
one of them.
  Not all members of the coalition are built on the same set of 
democratic values that our society is built on and India's society is 
built on. For many, this coalition is just a marriage of convenience. 
With respect to India, it is a marriage based on shared and common 
values of pluralism, respect for minorities, freedom of religion, 
political privileges of voting, freedom of press,

[[Page H7944]]

freedom of movement, and freedom of expression.
  India, with its vibrant democracy and secular government, is a rich 
and diverse society which stands as a beacon of example to many others 
in that region. There is no doubt in my mind, Mr. Speaker, that our 
friendship with India will continue to grow and deepen, and it is in 
this spirit that we welcome Prime Minister Vajpayee to the United 
States and to the Congress of the United States.
  Mr. Speaker, continuing my reservation of objection, I yield to the 
gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott), the chairman of the 
Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans.
  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me 
time.
  The 120-some members of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-
Americans are very excited to have the Prime Minister here in 
Washington, D.C. We just had a wonderful lunch where we greeted him, 
and we look forward to having a positive relationship develop to an 
even deeper level. The 11th of September was a day that jolted us all, 
and almost immediately Prime Minister Vajpayee was on the phone to the 
United States putting out his hand in help, offering bases, something 
that had never happened before.
  This is a major sea change in the relationship between India and the 
United States. I think all the Members of Congress who understand the 
importance of a stable Central and South Asia understand the strength 
that Prime Minister Vajpayee has brought to that area. He reached out 
to his neighbor, Pakistan, and took a bus trip to Pakistan, the first 
time an Indian Prime Minister had done that in the whole history of 
India-Pakistan relations. He is a man who walks the talk of peace, and 
he has become our friend; and we are very glad to have him here.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, continuing my reservation of objection, I am 
delighted to yield to my friend, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. 
Pallone).
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the ranking member for 
yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, let me say that I was very pleased today to have another 
opportunity at the India Caucus luncheon to meet and talk with Prime 
Minister Vajpayee. I admire him so much for all that he has done in 
India, both as a minority leader as well as now the Prime Minister. I 
have met him on many occasions and have always been very impressed by 
him.
  I think this resolution is important; and obviously I would urge its 
adoption, because it sets forth three things that I think are 
important:
  One is that India, like the United States, has historically been a 
victim of terrorism. India has been extremely supportive of the United 
States in the aftermath of September 11, in part because of their 
friendship with the United States, but also because they understand the 
negative impact of terrorism on their own state and own population, 
particularly as it has often occurred in Kashmir. India has been 
involved with the U.S. in acting against terrorism for a long time and 
has worked for several years with the United States in that regard and 
will continue to.
  The second thing I would mention is that India is very important to 
the United States because of the growing relationship that we share on 
every level. Certainly when we talk about trade, the growing trade 
relationship, when we talk about culture, there is so much interest in 
India culture in the United States and vice-versa.
  But more important right now, I think, is the importance of the 
defense relationship, and we understand that some of the conversations 
and talks that are taking place between the Prime Minister and 
President Bush relate to that defense relationship. I have been a long 
advocate of the need to increase our defense relationship, whether that 
means supplying military equipment or doing more military exercises 
with India.
  I think many of us know that, historically, India had relied on the 
former Soviet Union for much of its military equipment. I would like to 
see that change. I think the U.S. should be the main country that they 
look to in that regard. So I am hopeful that this week both the trade 
ties, but, more important, the defense ties, between India and the 
United States, will see some significant positive action. I am hopeful 
that that will in fact be the case.
  The third thing I wanted to mention, and we all know about the 
growing importance of the Indian-American community here in the United 
States, my district, my old district before the redistricting that took 
place a few weeks ago in New Jersey, had a very large Indian-American 
population. That has even increased more with the new district that I 
will be representing, hopefully, after this next year. I think that 
that Indian-American community has gone far towards building the ties 
between the United States and India based on democracy, based on 
capitalism, based on shared culture interests. The Prime Minister took 
note of that today at our luncheon, and I know that he is very proud of 
the impact that the Indian-American community has had here in the 
United States.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I am 
delighted to yield to my good friend, the gentleman from California 
(Mr. Royce), the distinguished Republican cochair of the India caucus.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, today we had a luncheon where we heard from 
Prime Minister Vajpayee. It is always good to see the Prime Minister 
consulting with the Congress and the administration to strengthen the 
ties between India and the United States. We all know how the ties 
between India and the United States have solidified over the years. 
However, since September 11 that relationship has reached new heights.
  India has been with the United States every step of the way. India 
has long known the horrors of terrorism, and now the United States has 
joined India in the fight against terrorism. India quickly condemned 
the attacks and immediately offered assistance to the U.S. India has 
provided the intelligence support, as well as the use of its military 
bases and air space.
  I had a chance to be there during the international fleet review in 
Mumbai and see why Colin Powell, our Secretary of State, said that 
India has the strength to keep the peace in the vast Indian Ocean and 
its periphery.
  Today, President Bush is skillfully leading what will be a difficult 
struggle, but India has demonstrated that it will be a key ally in this 
war. For that, we are appreciative.
  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, today, with this resolution, the House 
welcomes a friend, the Prime Minister of India, His Excellency Atal 
Bihari Vajpayee. The Prime Minister is in Washington in the course of 
visits to several capitals to emphasize India's longstanding commitment 
to fight terrorism.
  This is a matter on which we can all agree. America and India need to 
step up our security and political cooperation; India's importance to 
world security is obvious to anyone who possesses a map. Of course, 
Indians and Americans agree on many other subjects, especially on the 
benefits of democracy and human rights and on the benefits of trade.
  American-Indian relations have been getting better for many years, 
following the steady, upward path of bilateral trade. The fact that 
more and more individuals of Indian ancestry are contributing to our 
society, becoming citizens, and taking part in civic and business 
endeavors is another factor that contributes mightily to our improving 
relationship. As this trend continues, Americans get to know Indian 
culture and Indians are more likely to have friends and relatives in 
this country and have a realistic picture of life here.
  The United States wants to help India and its neighbors live in peace 
in a stable South Asia. It has become clear that, in the first 
instance, this will require the extirpation of al Qaida and the defeat 
of those who harbor it, the Taliban.
  India and Pakistan, rivals and sometimes enemies, are on the same 
side in this endeavor. I pray that they will take the opportunity to 
achieve some level of confidence in one another in a common struggle. I 
hope that American leadership will help bring them together wherever we 
can in fact be of assistance.
  Mr. Speaker, this is an important visit. The Indian Prime Minister is 
a most welcome guest, and one whom we are most pleased to honor with 
this resolution.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Otter). Is there objection to the 
request of the gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the concurrent resolution, as follows:

[[Page H7945]]

                            H. Con. Res. 264

       Whereas Congress is pleased to welcome the Prime Minister 
     of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, on his visit to the United 
     States;
       Whereas the United States and India, the world's two 
     largest democracies, are natural allies, based on their 
     shared values and common interests in building a stable, 
     peaceful, and prosperous world in the 21st century;
       Whereas from the very day that the terrorist attacks in New 
     York and Washington occurred, India has expressed its 
     condolences for the terrible losses, its solidarity with the 
     American people, and its pledge of full cooperation in the 
     campaign against international terrorism;
       Whereas India, which has been on the front lines in the 
     fight against international terrorism for many years, 
     directly shares America's grief over the terrorist attacks 
     against the United States on September 11, 2001, with the 
     number of missing Indian nationals and persons of Indian 
     origin estimated at 250;
       Whereas the United States and India are engaged as partners 
     in a global coalition to combat the scourge of international 
     terrorism, a partnership that began well before the tragic 
     events of September 11, 2001;
       Whereas cooperation between India and the United States 
     extends beyond the current international campaign against 
     terrorism, and has been steadily developing over recent years 
     in such areas as preserving stability and growth in the 
     global economy, protecting the environment, combating 
     infectious diseases, and expanding trade, especially in 
     emerging knowledge-based industries and high technology 
     areas; and
       Whereas more than 1,000,000 Americans of Indian heritage 
     have contributed immeasurably to American society: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That it is the sense of Congress--
       (1) to welcome the Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari 
     Vajpayee, to the United States;
       (2) to express profound gratitude to the Government of 
     India for its expressions of sympathy for the September 11, 
     2001, terrorist attacks and its demonstrated willingness to 
     fully cooperate with the United States in the campaign 
     against terrorism; and
       (3) to pledge commitment to the continued expansion of 
     friendship and cooperation between the United States and 
     India.

  The concurrent resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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