Obama Brings New Leadership At White House For South Asia

Lavoy and White last month penned a joint article for the Foreign Policy magazine.

"Obama's India trip last week brought symbolism but also substance. This is a moment to press forward and demonstrate what the US-India relationship can become," they wrote.

"The US can and should continue to help to broker India's distinct global role, even as it presses New Delhi to resolve difficult issues such as intellectual property rights, foreign direct investment caps and trade restrictions that might limit India's own economic ambitions over the long-run," they wrote.

"Similarly, Washington should recognise that the vestiges of India's non-alignment policy afford it a rare ability to bridge between Russia, the Middle East, and the West, a position that could give it quiet influence in the global campaigns to deal with Iran's nuclear ambitions and the rise of the ISIS," they wrote in the article on February 4.

Lavoy and White argued that the US should encourage India's efforts to build a capable defense industrial base.

The United States should look for ways to promote India's deeper engagement in Asian regional architecture, they said.

"Respecting India's history of non-alignment, the US can look for ways to deepen both the economic and defense elements of the burgeoning US-India-Japan relationship, and-in other trilateral and 'mini-lateral' formats-formalise cooperation on defence and counter-terrorism issues alongside common partners in Asia," they noted.
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