File Photo: US President Barack Obama with PM Modi. (Associated Press; Image used for representational purpose)
The US would like to see India "more deeply embedded" in regional and global trade architecture, a top American diplomat said, stressing that India's membership in Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation will make the forum a stronger organisation.
"We would like to see India more deeply embedded in the trade architecture in the region and globally and India's economy is significant enough that it should be part of these different regional and global architectures," Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal.
She underscored that the US and Indian leaders have welcomed India joining the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) at an "appropriate time" and said India's membership in the forum will make body stronger.
"We think that India's membership in the APEC will make APEC a stronger organisation since as the third largest economy India has much to contribute," she said during an interactive session held after her talk on India-US relations at the Indian Consulate in New York yesterday.
India also has to have the "trade posture and policies" that allow the member states of APEC to feel that there is an approach that would benefit the collective, she said.
That is something India is working its way towards, she said.
On a totalisation pact between India and the US, Ms Biswal informed that the two countries have started conversations on the issue.
The totalisation pact would allow citizens from the two countries to repatriate their social security savings when they return to their home country.
"We have had some initial conversations to see how we can try to address this. We have had some preliminary back and forth between our two governments to see what the different issues are," she said.
Terming totalisation as a "complex issue", Ms Biswal said the US recognises the concerns that have been raised and this is something that was discussed in New Delhi in January this year among officials when US President Barack Obama had visited India for the Republic Day celebrations.
"We will continue to look and explore how we can address some of these concerns that India has raised on totalisation," she said.
On visa issues, Ms Biswal said the legislative branch is working its way through immigration reform in the US. She noted that India has been and continues to be among the largest recipient of H1B and L1 work visas.
"We understand that there are continuing concerns on the Indian side and this is something we are looking closely at as the legislation works its way through Congress to see at what point we may take up some of these issues," she said.
Ms Biswal said the US would welcome India's conclusion of a bilateral investment treaty not only with it but also the different trade agreements that the South Asian country is working on with other countries.