Clinton ‘excited’ over India trip

Eagerly looking forward to her trip to India later this month,Hillary Clinton said she is excited about her forthcoming visit to New Delhi.

Eagerly looking forward to her trip to India later this month,US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she is excited about her forthcoming visit to New Delhi.

“I am very excited,” Clinton told reporters when asked about her India trip.

“I am very much looking forward to my trip next week,” she said. The dates of her visit have not been announced yet.

Story continues below this ad

Recollecting memories of her first trip to India as the First Lady of the US,Clinton said: “I was thrilled to go to India for the first time as first lady,and to begin a process that has led us to this point with the contributions of many along the way,that really demonstrate that the world’s largest democracy and oldest democracy have so much more in common than,perhaps,was first recognised.”

TO CREATE DEEP STRATEGIC TIES

Ahead of her much anticipated India visit later this month,Clinton said the Obama Administration is working with the Government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to create a “very deep and broad strategic engagement”.

“We are working hard with our Indian counterparts to create a very deep and broad strategic engagement,” Clinton told the State Department press corps at a hurriedly convened press conference after meeting the deposed Honduras President Manuel Zelaya at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department.

“I am very much looking forward to my trip next week,” Clinton said even as no official date of her trip has been announced yet.

Story continues below this ad

“It is my hope that we’ll be able to announce our intentions when I’m in India,and that we will be cooperating and working together across the broadest range of concerns that our two governments have ever engaged on,” she said in response to a question.

“I am very hopeful that the relationship between the United States and India,which has improved considerably over the last 15 years,continues on the path that we are on,” she said.

Identifying India as an emerging global power,Clinton said the recent election has provided political stability.

Clinton said the new government is very committed to pursuing a very activist domestic agenda,particularly around poverty and conditions that people in rural India,as well as its emphasis on development and job creation. It is also looking for ways that India can play a role,regionally and globally,on economic issues and other matters that confront us,she said.