Garcetti hailed the inauguration as a new beginning for the US-India relations….reports Asian Lite News
US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti on Friday at the inauguration ceremony of US Consulate office in Bengaluru said that the city ‘breathes’ the India-US relationship.
Garectti, while talking to the reporters, said that although there will not be any visa services in the first year, they will be pushing for it as soon as possible.
“It’s a great day for Bengaluru. It’s a great day for Karnataka. It’s a great day for the United States and for India. Look, this is a town that lives and breathes the US-India relationship,” Garcetti said.
Garcetti hailed the inauguration as a new beginning for the US-India relations.
“This was an accident of history that we have righted today. It is a new beginning. There won’t be visas this first year, but as you heard Minister Jaishankar say, we are going to push for that as soon as possible. But whether it’s health, aerospace, women’s empowerment, jobs, finance, we see the future here in Bengaluru. We see the future of US India here in Bengaluru. And this commitment today from our President with the Prime Minister fulfills that promise,” he said.
He said that the US has always benefitted from Indian workers, and the more the US builds on that, the better.
“Look, my message is very clear. We are stronger and we are together. America has benefited from Indian workers, H1B. We’ve benefited from Indian visitors. We have Indian Americans who are now running states, universities, Indian Americans, who are running, for the most important jobs, whether it’s doctors in rural areas that we couldn’t find Americans for, or some of our great small business owners. So to me, the more we can continue this and build on that, the better. And that is my message for the future,” he said.
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Chairperson and Managing Director of Biocon, said that the opening of the consulate was an important development as India-US relations are an important aspect of the future.
“I think this is such an important, you know, consulate for a city like Bengaluru, because I think the US-India, you know, partnership, the US-India trade corridor, everything is going to be a very, very important aspect of the future. And I think this was long overdue. I’m glad it has finally happened. And we from industry feel extremely, extremely proud and happy that the importance of Bengaluru has been recognized by setting up this consulate,” he said.
Mazumdar said that Bengaluru’s talent pool is sought by the entire world. The Consulate is hence, very important, she said.
“Let’s not forget that Bengaluru has a great talent pool, which is sought after by the whole world, including the US. So I think when it comes to tech talent, when it comes to visas for the tech talent from Bangalore, I’m sure it will have a very, very positive impact,” he said.
‘Great day for India-US relations’
Meanwhile, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar joined US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti for the opening of the US Consulate in Bangalore. Hailing the step as an important moment in the India-US ties, Jaishankar also announced that India will soon be opening its consulate in Los Angeles.
“Bengaluru is such an important place, it was for me an imperative that there is a permanent resident presence of American diplomats this time…It has been something long in waiting…I told him (US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti) you get Bengaluru done and I’ll get you Los Angeles done, which is his hometown. So we will be opening our consulate in Los Angeles also. A consulate serves many purposes. A big part of it is to facilitate travel,” the EAM said.
While addressing the gathering, Jaishankar highlighted several aspects of the India-US ties and said that the opening of the consulate was long due.
“Today it is within our grasp, within the realm of possibility, that we realise the potential of India-US relations. It is important that Bengaluru too, realise its potential in the relationship. As a country, today we are encouraging the opening of more embassies in the capital. It’s part of our deeper engagement with the world. But along with that, we are also encouraging more embassies to open consulates. I hope that there will be more occasions where more countries will open more consulates in Bengaluru. It would serve India’s interests, Karnataka’s interests and Bengaluru’s interests better”, Jaishankar said.
Speaking about the expanse of the India-US ties, Jaishankar remarked, “Today, when we look at all the possibilities before us in an era of AI, EVs, space and drones, our relationships will be heavily based on technology, even more so than before. It will have a much bigger space component because the space domain is just beginning to open up. Defence is a crucial area. Two decades ago, there were virtually no American weapons in our inventory, very little defence collaboration. Today we fly the C17s, the C130s, the Chinooks, the Apaches.”
He also highlighted the importance of the education and research sector between the two countries. “I hope to see collaborative campuses, exchange of students and a stronger American education presence in this region. Today, the formal opening of this consulate is one more sign that we are overcoming the hesitations of history”.
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