[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 134 (Thursday, September 18, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5853-S5855]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 INDIA

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, next week, Indian Prime Minister 
Narendra Modi will travel to the United States for the first time since 
his historic election victory. The U.S. and India are natural partners 
with shared values and common interests, yet we are far from realizing 
the full potential of our relationship to the mutual benefit of both of 
our countries. On behalf of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and 
thousands of Indian-American constituents across New Jersey, I welcome 
the Prime Minister to the United States and am confident that his visit 
will re-invigorate and refocus our partnership so that concrete 
progress can be made in a host of sectors.
  India's new government has won a historic mandate to deliver change 
and reform, and we should be ready to support India's efforts to meet 
challenges--through concrete measures to

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bolster trade and investment, strengthen defense cooperation, and 
deepen our security partnership.
  The U.S. and India are engaged in a comprehensive set of diplomatic 
dialogue and working groups--currently there are dozens such groups 
covering a wide range of issues in the areas of economics, security, 
climate change, and education. This is a relationship that does not 
suffer from a lack of dialogue. It has, however, unfortunately suffered 
from a lack of results, especially since the civilian nuclear framework 
was agreed to in 2005. With a strong push from the Prime Minister, 
President Obama and the U.S. Congress, the time is right for these 
dialogues to translate into action.
  There is broad support in the U.S. for a more robust economic and 
trade relationship with India. Investment should be at the top of this 
agenda. I welcome India's move to raise foreign investment ceilings in 
several sectors of the Indian economy, including defense, railways, e-
commerce and insurance. These are important steps that have helped to 
ease some of the concerns American companies have had about barriers to 
entering the Indian market. However more must be done and I hope that 
the U.S. and India will work together to address these remaining 
barriers.
  Vice President Biden laid out an ambitious trade target last summer 
in India, calling for a five-fold increase from $100 billion to $500 
billion a year in annual bilateral trade. Prime Minister Modi and 
President Obama should reconvene the Trade Policy Forum this year, 
which will provide a platform to identify steps to improve our economic 
and trade relationship. The Prime Minister's visit will also present an 
opportunity to reengage on World Trade Organization negotiations, where 
India's concerns are the last remaining barrier to the important Trade 
Facilitation Agreement. I also hope we can smooth the way forward for 
continued discussions to complete a Bilateral Investment Treaty.
  U.S. companies seek to invest in India, but need transparent 
governance, a fair regulatory environment, and strong legal mechanisms 
to protect those investments. If the Indian government can deliver on 
its plans for greater openness for capital flows and stronger 
intellectual property rights, I am confident our companies are ready to 
invest. We want to work together with India to help foster the best 
conditions for this kind of economic growth and partnership.
  I welcome recent reports that India plans to develop a new 
comprehensive intellectual property rights, IPR, policy. We need to see 
real reforms on this key issue, which significantly impacts the ability 
of U.S. companies to do business in an important market. In particular, 
the life sciences industry faces continuing challenges on IPR 
protections. I appreciate that this is a complex issue. Policymakers in 
both the United States and India want to ensure access to medications 
for those who need them, especially for low-income and other vulnerable 
populations. International life sciences companies in my State and from 
other nations are concerned that India's lack of protection of IPR will 
threaten innovation and affect access for those very people. I look 
forward to the renewed dialogue with the Indian government on this 
issue.
  India has a central role in contributing to prosperity in South Asia, 
a central foreign policy interest of the U.S. As the U.S. seeks to 
bolster Afghanistan's economic links in the region, within the 
framework of the New Silk Road initiative, we look to India to play a 
critical role in promoting trade with Afghanistan and the other 
countries of Central Asia. Regional economic connectivity should also 
extend to India's trade relationship with Pakistan. I urge both India 
and Pakistan to continue to work toward strengthening their bilateral 
relationship. Improved trade relations between India and Pakistan have 
the potential to unlock opportunities for over 1.5 billion people. The 
U.S. stands ready and willing to support efforts that enhance the 
cross-border trade relationship.
  India is a strong partner in U.S. counterterrorism efforts in the 
region, and we have a shared national interest to confront terrorism, 
prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and maintain 
regional stability. In Afghanistan, India has been a key provider of 
development assistance and supporter of the Afghan National Security 
Forces. As the international community draws down forces in 
Afghanistan, the U.S. and India should be prepared to increase 
counterterrorism and intelligence cooperation and coordination, and 
both sides should commit to a robust set of military exercises. Last 
year India significantly increased its purchases of American arms and 
now conducts more exercises and personnel exchanges with the U.S. than 
any other country--I welcome and encourage expanding this important 
collaboration.
  Defense cooperation remains the most promising area of U.S.-India 
cooperation, and I am pleased that Secretary Hagel's recent visit to 
India further deepened our defense ties. We should expand initiatives 
to strengthen our defense cooperation, including military exercises, as 
well as co-production and co-development of defense products. The 
Defense Technology and Trade Initiative should continue to advance 
efforts to reform India's defense procurement and management systems, 
and encourage both sides to explore the possibility of a revamped and 
expanded formal framework for a bilateral defense agreement.
  I believe we should be expanding educational ties in all sectors--the 
best and the brightest from both sides should be exchanging ideas and 
building on the innovative and entrepreneurial spirit that exists in 
both countries. I encourage the U.S.-India Education Dialogue to 
continue to explore areas of collaboration, including student and 
faculty exchange, research cooperation, and implementation of 
technology-enabled education strategies, such as e-learning, and 
cooperation between community colleges.
  Rutgers University has formed strong relationships with Indian 
educational and research institutions, and has increased the profile of 
India with businesses, communities, and nonprofit organizations in New 
Jersey. Rutgers was one of five recipients of the 21st Century 
Knowledge Initiative, which unifies many of the university's efforts 
with Indian institutions through faculty exchanges, and research and 
innovation collaboration in the priority areas of food security, 
climate change, sustainable health and public health. I strongly 
support these collaborations, and encourage the expansion of efforts to 
strengthen exchanges in technical and vocational education.
  India has a long and rich history of religious, ethnic, and 
linguistic pluralism with a vibrant civil society. We should also 
continue to work together to ensure greater respect for human rights, 
and encourage a legal framework that protects the civil rights and 
liberties of the most vulnerable Indian populations, particularly women 
and children.
  India is critical to international efforts to address climate change. 
There are huge opportunities for India to act on climate change while 
boosting development at the same time, and I urge the Indian government 
to continue to explore ways to make clean power more accessible and 
more affordable. We should also expand our partnership with India on 
energy, which would help them reduce dependence on unstable energy 
suppliers. Finally, we must continue to work toward cutting emissions 
from hydrofluorocarbons and coal--both of which contribute to climate 
change. I applaud Secretary Kerry and Minister Swaraj's efforts to 
establish a new joint working group on climate change, and am hopeful 
that we can continue to explore ways to expand R&D collaboration to 
bolster renewable energy sources, such as solar energy, to meet India's 
growing energy demands, while ensuring there are environmental 
protections.
  Our agenda is extensive and the potential to accomplish our mutually 
beneficial goals is limitless. There is so much room for growth. With 
sustained attention and leadership, as well as active engagement by the 
Indian-American diaspora, I am confident in our ability to achieve 
results and work toward a more prosperous and secure future. I am proud 
to welcome Prime Minister Modi to the United States and I wish him a 
successful visit.

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