Mumbai: Taking India-US bilateral ties to a new high, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti has said that Washington wants to build a “BFF (best friends forever) relationship" with New Delhi, and a change of guard at the White House will not change ties between the two countries.
Speaking at an event here, Garcetti said the relationship's nature has changed from one where it could be called complicated to a new status where it can be called "definitely dating”. He also made it clear that the relationship will not face any setbacks in the immediate future.
"We will have a new president in the United States, but one thing won't change which is America's devotion to and friendship to India," he said. "We recognize that for India to reach its full growth potential, as the largest democracy on earth, and to contend with regional competitors, among others, several things need to happen”.
Speaking on US-India relations, Garcetti said, "We know sometimes we face the same enemies, so if they're non-state actors or state actors, we are stronger together. We're making progress there, and we do believe that we can give India the space to solve its own bordering issues. But we're always here when you call."
Further, Garcetti also emphasized that India's challenges are for Indians and their government to address and assured that the US will always be available for support when needed. "India's challenges are for Indians and the Indian government to solve. We're very clear that it is not something for us from the outside to teach and preach.”
"But we're here to listen and learn, and nobody can deny how close the friendship between India and the US has become in moments of threats that we've seen, whether it's on the border with China," he added.
Garcetti also expressed the US desire to continue co-developing and co-manufacturing defense technologies with India, saying: "We want to have India be a place where our planes and our ships can come for repairs."
The US envoy further said that India is a country with immense investment opportunities where international investors are seeing higher returns compared to the other parts of the world. He said as a diplomatic mission, the US is encouraging institutional investors to pay greater attention to India and understand that the country is a complicated place just as the US is.
