Speaking at the 3rd India-US Leadership Summit Hosted virtually by the US India Strategy and Partnership Forum (USISPF), former US Ambassador to the UN Haley said Tuesday that Americans know Indians are not a threat to them. And as such, it is time for the Indians to share their success story.
The United States has been pushing for India to play a bigger role in the strategic Indo-Pacific, which many countries see as an effort to contain China’s growing influence in the region.
“Let’s acknowledge how China did it. China was very strategic. This was highly planned and the United States was very naive. Opinion leaders in the United States thought that if we were kind to China, if we opened the doors to China, it would be more like the West. , that China would become more democratic, “Haley said.
Responding to a question from Mastercard Chairman and CEO Ajay Banga said this was from both sides of the aisle: Republican and Democratic leaders, all of whom thought that if the United States was kind to China, there would be an alliance.
What the United States has to understand is that the Chinese want to be communists and that they are not going to change, said the 48-year-old former diplomat.
“Through this Indo-Pacific strategy, in the future, America is learning who its real friends are. When you find out about that, yes, it is India. But now the Indians must go and show more who they are.” said.
Explaining, he said that when people come across Indian businesses, a teacher or an Indian doctor, they see the warmth, intelligence and genuine side of them, and they want to know more.
“What we have to do is not be shy. But really go out there and brag about ourselves. Now is the time for the Indians to be proud, feel good talking about those achievements and be good talking about their successes and let them kids talk about your accomplishments. accomplishments. That’s really important in the future because … we have to make sure we take it to the next level, “said Haley, whose parents immigrated from Amritsar in Punjab.
“Americans are not threatened by Native Americans and they realize that Native Americans make our country better,” he said.
Haley is considered one of the main contenders for the Republican ticket to the US presidential race in 2024.
Responding to a question, Haley claimed that the Trump administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy has been a real game changer for the India-US relationship.
“When this administration adopted the Indo-Pacific strategy, it was a real game changer for many reasons. I had often thought that the United States seemed to ally a little more with Pakistan and a little less with India,” he said. said.
“It makes sense for the United States and India to be natural allies. We have the same values …” he said, adding that President Donald Trump saw that too.
“The Indo-Pacific strategy was one that recognized something that should have been there all along, which is that the United States and India should be natural allies,” Haley said.
The Indo-Pacific strategy, the former diplomat said, also recognized that the United States and India face the same threat from China.
“So it was a way of saying that we are going to start to see things differently. We have seen that develop with the alliance that we see with the United States, India, Australia and Japan (a reference to the Quad group of countries) We continue to see that strengthening, “he said.
From a military point of view, the United States and India have done well, Haley said, noting that the two countries still have work to do on trade.
“I hope we can tear down some of the barriers that India has with tariffs on the United States. We will get there too,” he said optimistically.
“This has been groundbreaking for a number of reasons. We have to keep building on that because looking at the mutual threats we have, whether it’s with China or what India has seen with Pakistan and going forward, I think it’s all the more reason why. that we should find other ways to strengthen each other and work together, “Haley said.
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