U.S. Foreign Policy in South Asia: A Vision for Prosperity and Security
Remarks
Nisha Desai Biswal
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government
Cambridge, MA
April 16, 2014
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Thank you Ambassador Burns for that kind introduction, and let me say that it is a great pleasure to be here in Boston
with you today. I had the pleasure of being in Cambridge a couple of years ago to address young Asian students as part
of the Harvard Project on Asia and it’s wonderful to be back at the Kennedy School. It is particularly poignant to be
here this week, as we commemorate the one year anniversary of the tragic bombing of the Boston Marathon and celebrate
the resilience of this city and with the 118th running of the Boston Marathon next Monday. That awful day served to
remind us that our world is indeed small, and getting smaller. And our security and well-being is increasingly impacted
by seemingly unrelated events and issues unfolding in remote corners of the world.
But that is something that all of you understand well. And as Nick often says, we live in one of the most complex
moments in world affairs. Our world has never been more globalized – brought closer by technology and innovation – but
we still must contend with the ills of inequality, conflict and poverty.
Nowhere is this more evident than in Asia. Home to nearly two-thirds of the world’s population, squeezed into one-third
of the world’s landmass, the countries of Asia manifest nearly every global challenge and are also brimming with
opportunity. If Asian economies are able to address key challenges, by 2050, Asia will comprise half of global GDP. As
Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns said just last week, Asia “matters enormously to the rest of the world – from our
partners in the Gulf, whose oil exports move increasingly toward rising demand in the east; to our allies in Europe,
whose economic revival hinges increasingly on Asian growth.”
I assure you the United States is as engaged as ever across the Asian continent. President Obama and Secretary Kerry
have said that “the United States will play a larger and long-term role in shaping this region and its future.”
And, as the Kennedy School has for years trained many of the preeminent policy makers in Washington and around the
world, I’m confident many of you in the audience will play a key role as well in shaping our engagement in this region.
Your generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, aspiring business leaders, and change agents must be engaged in not just
the opportunities of tomorrow but in helping address the challenges of today that are manifest in Asia: challenges like
confronting inadequate governance and pervasive corruption; countering terrorism and violent extremism; advancing human
dignity and human rights, promoting sustainable and inclusive growth; while protecting the environment and mitigating
the effects of climate change.
A Vision for Prosperity in South Asia
Today, I’d like to share some thoughts on how we view engagement in South Asia in particular. This is clearly a time of
great dynamism across South Asia, with elections and transitions that have been unfolding over the past year and
concluding over the next few months.
And while the transition in Afghanistan is the cause of much angst and anxiety, we are focused on the opportunities and
imperative it creates for connecting the economies of South Asia and Central Asia.
Through our New Silk Road vision we have been focusing our efforts in four key areas.
• Creating regional energy markets that link Central Asia with South Asia;
• Boosting transportation routes and investing in critical infrastructure;
• Improving customs and borders; and
• Linking businesses and people.
•
Afghanistan and its neighbors are now championing that New Silk Road vision themselves. The region is reducing barriers
to trade, investing in each other’s economies, and supporting cross-border projects.
From CASA-1000 – which will bring surplus hydropower form Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan – to
TAPI – the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline – the United States is supporting the countries of the
region as they build the economic and energy linkages that will transform their individual and collective economies.
We have focused on easing the constraints to trade in this least connected part of the world. U.S. technical assistance
has helped reduce custom procedures by nearly half in Afghanistan, dramatically reducing border release times.
Now clearly the biggest constraint to boosting trade and energy flows is in addressing the barriers between India and
Pakistan. Indeed, while I don’t currently have responsibility for Pakistan, I can say we are encouraged by the economic
progress that Pakistan has made in the past year, though it still faces many challenges ahead. And an improved climate
between Pakistan and its largest neighbor can pay enormous economic dividends. India-Pakistan trade in 2013 was still a
paltry $2.5 billion. There’s no reason that number can’t quadruple in a few years’ time to $10 billion. We have heard
some positive murmurings in Islamabad and Delhi that both governments are moving in this direction and we are hopeful
that they will make progress after the Indian election.
On the eastern front of South Asia, with the political transition in Myanmar, we also see a historic opportunity to
connect South and South East Asia into an integrated economic landscape. The past several years have seen significant
movement on that front as well.
• Myanmar is seeing the economic dividend from its political transition, with foreign investment more than
quadrupling since Thein Sein’s political reforms of 2011;
• Bangladesh in particular stands to develop tremendous commercial ties with the rest of Asia and has begun to
break down trade barriers with India;
• India and ASEAN, who have been dialogue partners for 20 years, summit partners for 10 years, and now strong
trade and investment partners with a FTA in services –have cultivated a lasting bond, with great complementarity to our
own ties with the 10-nation bloc.
•
But in the end, regional growth hinges on the region’s economic engine. In South Asia, that engine is India.
But India faces real vulnerabilities. Over 400 million people in India lack reliable access to energy. Road traffic is
supposed to quintuple in six years but highway construction is slated to grow at a paltry 4% a year.
India’s leaders have targeted to spend $1 trillion dollars over five years in infrastructure investment to close the
infrastructure gap that prevents real growth in the manufacturing sector, yet it continues to have policies that inhibit
foreign investment. India still ranks poorly amongst all countries as a hospitable place to invest and start a new
business, ranked 134 out of 189 countries.
And India must meet the skills gap to grow its economy –In fact, India needs eight times the number of trained
architects and civil engineers than it has now to meet its growth projections.
So, without sugar-coating its challenges – a tough neighborhood, tightening economic growth and the mounting impacts of
pollution on public health – India, the world’s largest democracy, must decide its own path to the future. Will it make
the reforms necessary to attract investment? Will it capitalize on the opportunities that lie in front of it?
Those are the questions that India’s voters are asking as they cast their ballots and those are the questions that we
want to see answered.
We know that India has the potential to exceed all of our expectations, and it has done so in the past.
But to do so we believe India’s investment and tax policies must be designed to lure – not deter – capital flows; timely
regulatory approvals and contract enforcement must be embraced; and protection of intellectual property must be
enforced.
Time and again the rules-based trading system has helped grow and integrate developing powers into major players on the
global scene. The more integrated India is into global markets and into the economic architecture of Asia, the more
India’s economy will grow and benefit the entire global economic system.
The United States is committed to growing the trade and investment ties between our two countries. We want to grow trade
to $500 billion a year. And, there’s no question that India’s economic success is vital to achieving the strategic aims
that both our leaders have laid out. In that vein, we pledge to look forward, and not dwell on the past.
• For instance, our Bilateral Investment Treaty when completed will bring even greater investment and innovation
to India and stronger partnerships between our two private sectors;
• We’re revolutionizing the way we discuss climate change issues, through bilateral cooperation in forestry,
adaptation, clean and renewable energy, and on HFCs through the creation of the Climate Change Working Group;
• We’re looking to partner with India on key global challenges, like preserving our oceans;
• We’re connecting researchers and students at our universities, including Harvard’s School of Public Health and
St John’s Research Institute in Bangalore so that they can together tackle global challenges such as malnutrition and
food insecurity;
• We’re working with India, through the Energy Dialogue, to increase energy access, share best practices, and
conduct joint research on clean and renewable energy and energy efficiency; and
• We’re partnering with India for the 2014 Tech Summit and Expo, a banner event that will bring together higher
education, industry, policy makers, researchers to engage in policy discussions and explore increased collaboration.
•
The Importance of Regional Security
While the prosperity agenda in South Asia is critically important, so too is enhancing political stability and regional
security. In order to enhance that stability and security, our foreign policy is designed around engagement – even on
the toughest and most vexing issues.
Successful elections in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India – all in the span of a year – create real opportunities for
regional stability. But we can’t ignore the security challenges posed by the drawdown of NATO forces and the transition
in Afghanistan.
As the countries of the region choose policies that promote economic growth and societal development, hundreds of
millions of people can be lifted out of poverty and into more prosperous, healthy, and secure futures.
On that front I am optimistic. Pakistan conducted its first civilian transition of power last year. Afghanistan is in
the middle of successful, broadly-participatory elections.
Nepal has made huge strides, building democratic institutions after years of conflict. Last November’s elections saw
historic voter turnout of over 70%. With USAID’s assistance, Nepal has cut its infant, under-5 and maternal mortality
rates roughly in half since 1996. Similarly, in Bangladesh, over the past twenty years, USAID has contributed to a
reduction in under-five mortality by 60 percent. Bangladesh is the only country where we’re implementing all three of
President Obama’s development initiatives – on health, food security, and climate change – and with U.S. assistance
Bangladesh is one of the few countries on track to achieve its Millennium Development Goals related to child and
maternal mortality
In Bangladesh, we continue to press for greater political inclusion, without which, a more stable and prosperous future
is put at risk. But one must acknowledge the important gains Bangladesh has made in improving the health, food security
and economic opportunity for its citizens. And while the Rana Plaza and Tazreen factory fires focused world attention on
the inadequate labor conditions, we have engaged, along with European partners, in an intense effort with labor,
industry, civil society and government to have great improvements in the garment sector in Bangladesh. Our security
cooperation with both Nepal and Bangladesh has grown over the years, not only on the international peacekeeping front,
where both countries are important contributors, but also on border security, counter terrorism and HADR.
We are particularly focused in supporting Nepal and Bangladesh as they build their capacity to respond to natural and
humanitarian disasters. In Nepal, we have partnered with the Government to educate Nepalis about the importance of
preparing for disasters, particularly earthquakes, to which the nation is especially vulnerable. In Bangladesh, we are
helping prepare for cyclones and have built over 500 cyclone shelters since 2001. We recently transferred a U.S. Coast
Guard cutter to the Bangladeshi Navy which has already played a disaster response role.
Sri Lanka has fortunately ended its civil war, though reconciliation has proved challenging. Following the March UN
Human Rights Council resolution in Sri Lanka, we continue to call for credible efforts to ensure accountability and
justice. We look forward to a resumption of a more comprehensive military relationship once the Government of Sri Lanka
has made better progress toward reconciliation and accountability. Further south in Maldives, we’re working closely with
that young democracy to protect its waters and cooperate on counterterrorism.
Our security engagement with India is a central element of the broad U.S.-India strategic partnership. That’s why we are
committed to a partnership that includes a strong and influential India in the security realm. Why? Because it can
contribute to the stability of the Indian Ocean region. We remain committed to working with India as we develop a joint
approach security in the Indo-Pacific.
We’ve expanded our regional consultations with India to include South, Central, West, and East Asia. We’ll hold new
rounds of several of these dialogues soon. With a sixth round set for early June, the U.S.-India- Japan trilateral
dialogue has deepened our discussions on Indo-Pacific economic connectivity, maritime security, and coordination in
multilateral fora. Our long-term geo-strategic convergence in this region with India has never been more apparent.
And last year we sent a senior-level representative to participate for the first time in the Indian Ocean Regional
Association (IORA) as a dialogue partner. All told, we’d argue that almost nowhere do U.S.-India interests currently
converge as much as in the Indo-Pacific, the vast littoral arc stretching from South Africa to Australia.
And last, but not least, our path-breaking defense relationship: Spanning the last decade, we’ve made significant
progress in helping India modernize its armed forces and in expanding joint exercises that enhance regional security.
Today, we are proud to have a growing track record of notable defense sales, including, most recently, the C-17 and
C-130J transport aircraft, and the P-8I maritime surveillance aircraft. With many more projects in the pipeline that
will provide top-end equipment and capabilities to our Indian partners, we’re firmly committed to a stronger
co-production and co-development relationship, meeting our collective security needs and reducing costs.
Conclusion
Let me conclude by saying simply, that as I look out over the horizon and assess the challenges and opportunities for
the United States to engage with the countries of South Asia, I am struck by the enormous potential for continued
expansion of our relations with a region that will be increasingly consequential to our interests in the years ahead.
Thank you.
ENDS