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NEW DELHI (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on
Tuesday pledged robust counterterrorism cooperation with India
while assuring Indian officials that the Obama administration won’t
ease pressure on Pakistan to combat extremists or allow the Taliban
to regain power in Afghanistan with a precipitous withdrawal of
American troops.
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While hailing improved U.S.-Indian ties, Clinton also called on New
Delhi to ease trade restrictions keeping American firms out of
India’s massive market and urged the government to quickly resolve
a dispute over investments in the nuclear energy.
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But her meetings with top Indian officials focused largely on
fighting terror, improving ties between nuclear-armed rivals India
and Pakistan and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.
Her second visit to India as America’s top diplomat came less than
a week after a triple bombing killed 20 people in India’s financial
capital of Mumbai, the country’s worst terror strike since
Pakistan-based gunmen rampaged through the city in 2008.
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S.M. Krishna, India’s foreign minister, expressed concerns that the
planned U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan that began this
month could lead to a resurgence in Islamic extremism.
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“It is in the larger interests of the region that it is necessary
for the United States to work very closely with (Afghan) President
(Hamid) Karzai and the government of Afghanistan and thereby create
conditions where terrorists do not take any more advantage in
Afghanistan,” Krishna told a joint news conference after 2 1/2
hours of talks with Clinton.
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Clinton said she had outlined the drawdown strategy and stressed
that the United States will not support Afghan reconciliation with
insurgents unless it is inclusive and protects the rights of
minority groups, religions and women.
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Clinton also assured India of U.S. support in the fight against
terror.
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“We are allies in the fight against violent extremist networks. And
homeland security is a high priority and a source of increasing
partnership,” Clinton said.
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While the U.S. and India have already signed agreements to
cooperate in counterterrorism efforts, “the events in Mumbai have
driven home how important it is that we get results,” she
said.
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Though India has not blamed Pakistan for last week’s attack, it has
accused its neighbor of harboring violent extremist groups
responsible for other attacks in India and of not doing enough to
crack down on those responsible for the 2008 Mumbai
siege.
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For its part, U.S. officials fear Pakistan is not fully committed
to combatting radical plots, such as the Mumbai attacks and the
failed 2010 Times Square bombing in New York.
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“In the aftermath of the attacks of 2008 in Mumbai, we made it very
clear that there was an absolute international responsibility to
cooperate to bring the perpetrators to justice. We have made that
equally forcefully clear to Pakistan that it has a special
obligation to do so transparently, fully and urgently,” she said.
“We have made it clear to the Pakistani government that confronting
violent extremists of all sorts is in its interest.”
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India recently resumed peace talks with Pakistan that broke off
following the 2008 Mumbai siege, and the two countries’ foreign
ministers are expected to meet next week.
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The U.S. is eager for the fragile talks to pick up steam, in part
to allow Pakistan to focus its forces on the chaotic Afghan
border.
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“We are encouraged by the dialogue between India and Pakistan,”
Clinton said, calling talks “the most promising approach” to build
more confidence between them.
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During the meeting Tuesday, Clinton and Krishna agreed to
strengthen their countries’ ties in energy, security, education,
the economy, science and promoting stability across the region. The
two countries also signed an agreement promoting closer cooperation
in cybersecurity.
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Once frosty relations between India and the United States have
warmed considerably in recent years as Washington has looked to
India as stable ally in the turbulent South Asia region and its
growing economy as a valuable market for U.S. goods.
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Despite improvements, Clinton said more needed to be done to
fulfill the potential for commercial relations.
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“Each of our countries can do more to reduce barriers, open our
markets, and find new opportunities for economic partnership,”
Clinton said. “Taking these steps is in our mutual interest. We can
improve millions of lives and increase both of our nations’
economic competitiveness.”
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She called for a quick resolution to a dispute over nuclear energy
investments, urging India to ratify by the end of the year the
Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage and to
adapt its liability laws to conform with the treaty.
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The U.S. views India’s new nuclear liability law as too stringent
on nuclear plant suppliers, making it difficult for private U.S.
companies like General Electric and Westinghouse to compete against
state-owned companies in India’s multibillion dollar nuclear
reactor market.
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Boosting other business ties were also on the agenda.
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Many Western officials have looked to India’s rising economy and
its 1.2 billion people as a coveted market to help stimulate growth
in their own troubled economies.
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Clinton praised India’s fight against piracy, and pushed for
greater sales of U.S. arms to India – the world’s largest arms
importer – as a way of deepening security cooperation between the
two nations.
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U.S. officials were annoyed earlier this year when Indian officials
chose two European companies as finalists for an $11 billion order
for 126 fighter jets. However, last month India signed an agreement
to buy 10 Boeing C-17 cargo and troop-carrying aircraft for more
than $4 billion.
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From New Delhi, Clinton on Wednesday will move on to the
southeastern port of Chennai, where she plans to deliver a speech
on the importance of U.S.-Indian relations, the benefits of
enhanced bilateral commercial ties and India’s role in South Asia
and the greater Asia-Pacific region.
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—
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