Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Obama calls Manmohan, says India important for US

New Delhi, November 12: US President-elect Barack Obama on Wednesday telephoned Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and said the US-India strategic relationship is a "very important partnership" and the his administration wants to work together with India on all important global issues.
This was first reported by Indian Express.com.

The call was placed on Wednesday morning as earlier attempts to establish contact between the two sides failed to materialise because the PM was travelling abroad.

Singh congratulated Obama on his historic victory and said his success would be an inspiration for the oppressed people all over the world.

The Prime Minister said that the relationship between India and the US was "very good" but "we should not be satisfied with the status quo".

Singh conveyed his best wishes for the success of the Obama administration in meeting challenges that face the world and invited Obama and his wife Michelle to visit India.

Obama praised Singh's contribution to the progress of India as Finance Minister earlier and the Prime Minister now.

The Prime Minister, during the telephonic talks, said that a warm welcome awaited him in India.

Obama expressed his wish for an early visit during the telephonic talks.

Earlier, to dispel all speculation over 'no phone call' from Barack Obama to India after becoming the US President-elect, the government made arrangements to schedule a call on Wednesday between him and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Official sources said there was nothing beyond scheduling issues that had prevented the call from taking place so far. In fact, India was in the first list of countries that Obama wanted to reach out but the proposed time slot was too close to the PM’s departure time for Oman and Qatar on November 8.

Singh too mentioned this to reporters on board the special Air India aircraft on Monday night while flying home from the Gulf. “This is not true (that he chose to ignore India). He wanted to talk to me the day before yesterday (Saturday). We could not establish contact because the time that was suggested was too short for us to interact. And since I have been travelling for the last two days... as soon as I get back...,” he said.

The PM, who leaves for the G20 meeting later this week, recalled his recent interaction with Obama.

“I had a very warm letter from him just before he was elected President. And I myself had written to him... I got a very warm letter from him, a detailed letter spelling out his approach to India, international affairs. Therefore, I have every reason to believe that under him, our relations will get stronger than ever before,” Singh said.

Obama wrote a lengthy letter to Singh during the campaign, spelling out his international priorities. He flagged off three broad issues — combining efforts to combat terror, working together on climate change and on nuclear disarmament.
Soruce: http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Obama-finally-calls-Manmohan--says-India-important-for-US/384689/

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