New Delhi: Amid the ongoing political crisis in Pakistan, US Ambassador Eric Garcetti on Wednesday said that both India and the United States want stability in Pakistan, adding that both countries will “pray that the rule of law and peace prevail over the border,” reported news agency PTI.
While addressing the media, Garcetti also said India is emerging as a leading power in the world and that he is impressed with the progress the country has made in the last three decades.
“I think the US, India and the world share the same concern. We want stability in Pakistan. We hope that there won’t be unrest in Pakistan,” he said, ANI reported.
“We stay engaged with Pakistan because of that. I think that serves India and the US and the world. We hope that the rule of law and peace will prevail over the border. But that is up to the Pakistani people to decide,” he added, according to PTI.
Speaking about his Mumbai visit, Garcetti said that he had a great time discussing ways to strengthen Indo-US partnerships with leading cultural, financial, and business figures.
“I first came to India as a teenager, and I learned so much. I learned how deeply we are connected to people everywhere on this planet, no matter where we live, what language we speak, how much money we have, or how we worship,” he said, according to PTI.
He added, “As a teenager, I never could have imagined the growth and progress that India has achieved in the past three decades. India is emerging as a leading power in the world.”
Garcetti said that in 1992, the year he graduated from college after studying Hindi and Indian cultural and religious history, US-India ties had languished.
“Our annual trade stood at USD 2 billion, our development relationship was a one-way flow, our defence trade was zero, and our military interoperability was non-existent,” he said, as per PTI.
He further stated, “The US is now India’s biggest trading partner, with USD 191 billion in bilateral trade last year. India now sends the most students of any country to the US. Our militaries train together."
“We are protecting an Indo-Pacific that is free and open, connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient. And our leading companies collaborate to solve global challenges in inclusive development and renewable energy,” he said.
“We are jointly addressing global health and development challenges, confronting climate change, and delivering next generation critical and emerging technologies. We are showing the world how the United States and India are better together,” he added.