A meeting long awaited

Modi’s approach is not expected to be a big departure from AB Vajpayee’s legacy.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stepped forward to restore momentum to India’s relationship with the United States by accepting President Barack Obama’s invitation for bilateral talks in September. This signals a desire to inject energy into a relationship that has run into trouble following trade and visa disputes, and a stalemate over the Indo-US Nuclear Deal.

The new Prime Minister is committed to pro-market policies and engagements in the fields of defence and technology; his decision shows that he will not allow the past American slight of denying him a visa to get in the way of his government’s efforts to build bridges.

Modi’s approach is not expected to be a big departure from AB Vajpayee’s legacy. Vajpayee had called the US a “natural ally” and reached out to Washington strategically. It was Vajpayee who began the negotations on the Nuclear Deal with Washington. The Vajpayee Government had also ignored the anti-US clamour across the political aisle and backed American intervention in Afghanistan.

About The Author

Open