US lawmakers to discuss Indian election; bilateral ties

WASHINGTON: US lawmakers will discuss the impact of Indian general elections on strained bilateral ties and the ways to reinvigorate them.

Indian Ambassador to the US S Jaishankar has been invited to speak at the event in the Capitol Hill tomorrow organised by the US-India Business Council ( USIBC).

It is believed to be the first pre-election deliberation at the Capitol Hill.

Senator John Cornyn, Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of the powerful Senate India Caucus, will discuss a number of short and long-term priorities for reinvigorating the US-India relationship, including goals for enhanced trade opportunities, energy exports and visa policy that will be beneficial to both nations, his office said in a statement.

Cornyn would be joined by Senator Mark Warner, Co-Chair of the Senate India Caucus, along with the two other Co-Chairs of the House India Caucus - Democrat Joe Crowley and Republican Peter Roskam.

A panel discussion will be moderated by Rick Rossow, Wadhwani Chair in US-India Policy Studies, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies - a prominent Washington-based think-tank.

The panelists include Ron Somers, USIBC president; former US Ambassador to India, Frank Wisner; and Arvind Subramanian, Senior Fellow at Peterson Institute for International Economics.