August 30, 2017 — New Delhi, India
An AJC delegation has concluded a visit to New Delhi celebrating the warm and vigorous relationship between India and the United States, and the increasingly close Israel-India ties, marked most recently by Prime Minister Modi's successful visit to Jerusalem in early July. AJC's commitment to advancing these relationships has been ongoing for the past 25 years, evidenced by our work with Indian government officials and the Indian diaspora communities across the United States, and by our annual visits to New Delhi. AJC has had continuous representation in India since 1994.
The delegation, led by AJC Honorary President Stanley Bergman and Associate Executive Director for Policy Jason Isaacson, who met with Modi most recently in Jerusalem, discussed regional and global issues of common concern with senior Indian officials, parliamentarians, and policy analysts. The dynamism of the India-Israel relationship and its potential for expansion in multiple areas was mentioned at every meeting, where the sense of excitement and optimism was palpable.
“The natural affinities between India, the United States and Israel – all vibrant and vigorous democracies – benefit their people and contribute to global peace and prosperity,” said Isaacson. “The countries enjoy increasingly strong strategic, political and economic links. AJC has been an active advocate of this trilateral partnership for more than two decades – and this week’s visit, on the heels of the historic visit to Israel of Indian Prime Minister Modi following his successful visit to the United States in the early summer, reinforced our efforts.”
Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, Minister of Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State for External Affairs Mobashar Jawed Akbar, and Minister of State for Parliamentary & Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi were among the officials with whom the AJC delegation met. The visit concluded with a panel discussion at the Brookings Institution, New Delhi, with Isaacson and Ambassador Arun Singh, former ambassador to both the U.S. and to Israel, discussing the important role of diaspora communities in American political life.
AJC Asia Pacific Institute (API) Director Shira Loewenberg, AJC Africa Institute Chair Marion Bergman, and India Representative Arjun Hardas were part of this delegation.
Photo By: Laurie Jones
