Business groups look at India as part of strategy to diversify globally: Kurt Campbell

Many business groups look at India as part of a strategy to diversify globally and as a land for new supply chains and investment opportunities, a top White House official has said.

Kurt Campbell, Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific, said the relationship between India and the US has developed over the years and there is a degree of trust and confidence now, which was not present a decade ago.

"Both the United States and India are imperfect democracies. We both have challenges. I think we will be discussing it in that context. But I think what we have also developed more and more between the US and India is a degree of trust and confidence that frankly was not present a decade ago. And I think our goal will be to seek to build on that," he said.

There will be deliverables and discussions about areas where the two countries are united and areas where they still continue to have concerns, he added.

"Many business groups and investment groups are looking at India as part of a strategy to diversify globally. New supply chains, new investment opportunities. The most impressive diaspora I've engaged with is Indian Americans in the United States, who are proud and pleased with what they see generally in terms of the embrace going forward," he said.

Speaking at the Hudson Institute think-tank at Washington DC, Campbell said everyone understands the critical role that India is playing on the global stage and noted that this role is not simply strategic.

He hoped that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's US visit consecrates the India-US relationship as the most important bilateral relationship for the United States on the global stage.

Prime Minister Modi will embark on his first state visit to the US at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden this month. During his four-day visit starting on June 21, the US president and the First Lady will host Modi for a state dinner on June 22.

"My hope is that this visit basically consecrates the US-India relationship as the most important bilateral relationship for the United States on the global stage and that we effectively make it into sort of escape velocity," he said.

"The hope will be to open up venues and activities for more investment for more people. Our universities need to train many more engineers and high-tech people. The general attitude of India is to give me this opportunity," said Campbell, adding that the United States wants to open up these opportunities for "greater people-to-people contacts across the board".