Friends, we had earlier discussed the need for India US China to have trilateral discussions on global issues and mark out their areas of core concerns so that neither side intereferes in ITS area of core concern. For India it is most crucial as it is the newest emerging economy of the three.
Earlier I had mentioned how Foreign Secretary Mathai and discussed this in 2011. (http://defenceforumindia.com/forum/...-trilateral-dialogue-united-states-china.html)
Now Clinton has also publicly acknowledged this reality. It seems that we be seeing a regular trialteral meeting between these three countries in the near future
3-party talks with India, China essential: Clinton | The Jakarta Post
A three-party dialogue involving India, China and the United States will be essential in the future, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said, in a sign that ties between the world's two largest democracies are still going strong.
Clinton, whose visit to India followed those to China and Bangladesh, said this at a town hall-style meeting in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal state, Monday.
She told her audience that while she was in Beijing, she was "building a constructive relationship not only bilaterally, but among our three countries in fact".
"The trilateral connection among China, India and the United States will be essential in the future as well," she said.
Plans for such a trilateral dialogue have been in the works for some time. The US has said that consultations involving the three countries are crucial for resolving key issues such as climate change and global trade.
India and China belong to the Brics group, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. India is also part of a trilateral dialogue group with the US and Japan, which is viewed with suspicion by China. The group held its first trilateral meeting last December.
An Indian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said New Delhi was open to the idea of a trilateral dialogue with Washington and Beijing.
"Let the US and China talk to each other and then we will take a decision. We are open to the idea," said the official.
Clinton, who noted that the strategic interests of India and the US were "increasingly aligning", pushed India to further cut oil imports from Iran, which is suspected of developing nuclear weapons.
"We commend the steps they have taken thus far. We hope they will do even more," she said, ahead of talks today with External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, who is likely to ask that India be exempted from US sanctions to be imposed on nations that still buy Teheran's oil.
Clinton also urged India to open up its retail sector to foreign companies, as this would increase opportunities for its people and raise the standard of living.
She later met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, whose party is the ruling Congress party's key ally. She blocked retail reforms that would have allowed supermarket chains such as Walmart to enter India to protect the country's small shopkeepers, who fear they would not be able to compete.
The Chief Minister, who held talks with Clinton for over an hour, presented the top US diplomat with a scarf, as well as an English translation of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore's Gitanjali, a collection of poems.
Said Banerjee: "This is a matter of pride that a US secretary of state has come and talked to us here for the first time after independence."
"We are all happy, and we think that West Bengal should be a destination for investment," she added.
In the afternoon, Clinton arrived in the Indian capital, where she met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi. It is understood that PM Singh told her India would be going for huge infrastructure projects and would welcome US investments. They also talked about China, Iran and Afghanistan.
Experts said Clinton's statement on retail reforms and her meeting with Banerjee were part of Washington's effort to encourage India to open up its markets.
Said Professor Chintamani Mahapatra of Jawaharlal Nehru University: "Some day, the US would like to see India with more open markets in the service sector, insurance and banking, which are worth billions of dollars. It is a long-term goal to convince India, and every step is important."
Earlier I had mentioned how Foreign Secretary Mathai and discussed this in 2011. (http://defenceforumindia.com/forum/...-trilateral-dialogue-united-states-china.html)
Now Clinton has also publicly acknowledged this reality. It seems that we be seeing a regular trialteral meeting between these three countries in the near future
3-party talks with India, China essential: Clinton | The Jakarta Post
A three-party dialogue involving India, China and the United States will be essential in the future, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said, in a sign that ties between the world's two largest democracies are still going strong.
Clinton, whose visit to India followed those to China and Bangladesh, said this at a town hall-style meeting in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal state, Monday.
She told her audience that while she was in Beijing, she was "building a constructive relationship not only bilaterally, but among our three countries in fact".
"The trilateral connection among China, India and the United States will be essential in the future as well," she said.
Plans for such a trilateral dialogue have been in the works for some time. The US has said that consultations involving the three countries are crucial for resolving key issues such as climate change and global trade.
India and China belong to the Brics group, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. India is also part of a trilateral dialogue group with the US and Japan, which is viewed with suspicion by China. The group held its first trilateral meeting last December.
An Indian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said New Delhi was open to the idea of a trilateral dialogue with Washington and Beijing.
"Let the US and China talk to each other and then we will take a decision. We are open to the idea," said the official.
Clinton, who noted that the strategic interests of India and the US were "increasingly aligning", pushed India to further cut oil imports from Iran, which is suspected of developing nuclear weapons.
"We commend the steps they have taken thus far. We hope they will do even more," she said, ahead of talks today with External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, who is likely to ask that India be exempted from US sanctions to be imposed on nations that still buy Teheran's oil.
Clinton also urged India to open up its retail sector to foreign companies, as this would increase opportunities for its people and raise the standard of living.
She later met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, whose party is the ruling Congress party's key ally. She blocked retail reforms that would have allowed supermarket chains such as Walmart to enter India to protect the country's small shopkeepers, who fear they would not be able to compete.
The Chief Minister, who held talks with Clinton for over an hour, presented the top US diplomat with a scarf, as well as an English translation of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore's Gitanjali, a collection of poems.
Said Banerjee: "This is a matter of pride that a US secretary of state has come and talked to us here for the first time after independence."
"We are all happy, and we think that West Bengal should be a destination for investment," she added.
In the afternoon, Clinton arrived in the Indian capital, where she met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi. It is understood that PM Singh told her India would be going for huge infrastructure projects and would welcome US investments. They also talked about China, Iran and Afghanistan.
Experts said Clinton's statement on retail reforms and her meeting with Banerjee were part of Washington's effort to encourage India to open up its markets.
Said Professor Chintamani Mahapatra of Jawaharlal Nehru University: "Some day, the US would like to see India with more open markets in the service sector, insurance and banking, which are worth billions of dollars. It is a long-term goal to convince India, and every step is important."
) wouldnt have either.
