Indo-US economic ties top priority, says US Ambassador to India Nancy J Powell

WASHINGTON: Headed for New Delhi next week, new US Ambassador to India Nancy J Powell has said realising the true potential of economic relationship between India and the US would be her top priority.

The first women US ambassador to India, Powell said she would leave for New Delhi on next Wednesday and would be back shortly for the India-US Strategic Dialogue in mid-June.

Among her priorities in India, she said are "economic relationship".

"Clearly our relationship is founded on democratic values, from the shared history that we have in promoting those values, but the economic and commercial relationship has been a very very important one," she told at a reception hosted by US India Business Council (USIBC) in her honour.

In her brief speech, Powell said she looks forward to promoting American business in India, working with the Indian community, which wishes to invest in the US, because this truly is a bilateral relationship - a two way street.

Before the reception, the USIBC senior leadership held a detailed briefing for Powell on the state of India-US relationship from their perspective.

"American businesses, we believe joining the Indian counterpart are the foundation of this partnership, on top of which we crowned it with a strategic partnership," said Ron Somers, USIBC president.

Last week, Powell had met Indian Ambassador to the US Nirupama Rao.