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U.S. “will work to make India a full NSG partner”

NEW DELHI: The United States will continue to work towards making India a “full partner” in the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG) and support all its efforts to build nuclear energy capacity, David Bohigian, Assistant Secretary of State in the Department of Commerce, said here on Monday.

Speaking at a Confederation of Indian Industry event, “Invest in America,” Mr. Bohigian said U.S. President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the entire U.S. administration worked tirelessly to ensure that India got the crucial waiver at the NSG.

Mr. Bush and Congress would continue to work to make India a full partner in the NSG. This would be crucial from strategic, political, economic and energy standpoints, he said. “We will ensure that U.S. companies play a big role in the Indian nuclear energy market estimated to be $100 billion… When you look at the energy map of 2020 and beyond, certainly nuclear energy has a key role to play in India’s growth, which we welcome.”

Mr. Bohigian, who focuses on market access and compliance, said the U.S. could be an attractive investment destination for Indian companies seeking to capture the North American and Latin American markets. “An added advantage of investing in the U.S. is that it has one of the most productive workforces in the world and offers transparent legal system, strong intellectual property rights protection and best risk-adjusted profits.”

Indian companies had made substantial investments in the IT sector, Mr. Bohigian said. He asked the industry leaders to explore opportunities in other sectors as well. The ‘Invest in the U.S.’ initiative launched last year had three main goals — to communicate to the world the importance of open investing; continue creating the best policy environment for FDI; and play the role of an ombudsman and help companies navigate the investment scenario in the United States.

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