US lawmakers introduce bipartisan resolution to defend India ties

Washington, Nov 18
US Representatives Ami Bera and Joe Wilson on Monday introduced a bipartisan resolution reaffirming the strategic value of the India-US partnership and its role in promoting stability and shared democratic priorities.

The resolution received strong bipartisan support with 24 original cosponsors, including members such as Sydney Kamlager-Dove, Rich McCormick, Deborah Ross, Rob Wittman, Suhas Subramanyam and Jay Obernolte.

The resolution emphasised the shared fight against terrorism, calling for “continued cooperation on counterterrorism, including the swift prosecution of the perpetrators of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.”

It also mentioned the terrorist attack in Pahalgam in April, which killed 26 people, saying that the attack was “claimed by The Resistance Front (a proxy of Lashkar-e-Taiba), highlighting the persistent threat of cross-border and proxy terrorism in South Asia.”

Lawmakers stressed that support for deepening ties with India has been a constant across party lines and presidential transitions.

“For more than three decades, it has been the policy of the United States under administrations of Presidents Clinton, Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden to strengthen the strategic partnership with India, recognising its importance to regional stability, democratic governance, economic growth, and shared regional priorities,” the resolution said.

They noted that the partnership has become central to Washington’s Indo-Pacific strategy and focused on the importance of the Quad – an informal grouping of four democracies of India, the United States, Japan and Australia.

The resolution “encourages the United States and India to continue and expand cooperation for a free, open, and resilient Indo-Pacific, including through the Quad” and welcomed India’s “participation in economic initiatives, including through bilateral and multilateral forums, its participation in the Quad, and other venues of cooperation.”

The measure also called for continued collaboration on issues such as technology, energy security and people-to-people ties.

The resolution comes weeks after five Congress members wrote a letter to President Donald Trump, urging him to reconsider his September 19th proclamation on H-1B visas due to its “potentially negative impacts” on the India-US relationship.

“Although 75% of current H-1B visa recipients come from India, the program still needs to be enhanced and increased rather than limited to a select amount of people or corporations that can pay exorbitant amounts of money to get a visa,” the letter said.

The letter was co-signed by Congressmen Jimmy Panetta, Ami Bera, Salud Carbajal, Derek Tran and Congresswoman Julie Johnson.