India, US should together shape the New Normal: US Pacific Command Commander

NEW DELHI: India and the US must seize the opportunity and shape the New Normal together because if “we do not do that it will become a de facto,” Adm. Harry B Harris Jr, Commander, US Pacific Command said here on Wednesday while delivering the keynote address at the second edition of the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi.

Warning against the tendency of accepting the New Normal, Adm. Harris pointed out that this is a pessimistic view.

He said that prosperity and security are intertwined and because India and the US share common values and concerns “India and the US must sharpen our tools” to protect the rule-based international system or what he called the “global operating system.”

Adm. Harris said India is a “responsible and truly a great power” that is committed to principles of peaceful resolution of disputes and freedom of navigation.

Answering a question, Adm. Harris said that one of the key challenges of the Indian Ocean region is that most of the key choke-points such as the Malacca Straits and the Straits of Hormuz. “The big threat is to freedom of navigation and maritime security in the Indian Ocean,” he said. In this context, he pointed out that India and the US now have the foundation agreements and he urged the two countries to “continue to sharpen their tools.”

Adm. Harris also said that while India and the US have made progressed in their partnership, he also pointed that “bureaucracy, history and trust,” have been “areas of frustration” in taking their relationship forward.

With the Trump Administration taking over in two days, Adm .Harris said that there will be more of a continuation of US policy towards the Indo-Pacific. He said “the Trump team fully understand the importance of the region as the most consequential region for the future of the U.S.

More than 250 participants from 65 countries are taking part in this year’s three-day Raisina Dialogue. The first edition was attended by 120 participants from 40 countries.