US investment in India has risen 500% in two years

Bloomberg

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson laid out the Trump administration’s vision for the US role in South Asia, arguing for greater US economic influence and military ties as he praised an “emerging Delhi-Washington strategic partnership” as an anchor for stability.
Tillerson’s speech on Wednesday, a rare policy address for America’s top diplomat since he took office more than eight months ago, was in keeping with a broader shift on South Asia under which the US intends to seek India’s help more often as a partner in Afghanistan.
“The Trump administration is determined to dramatically deepen ways for the United States and India to work together,” Tillerson said at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, where he was a board member for 11 years. The remarks came ahead of Tillerson’s planned trip to India next week.
“In this period of uncertainty and angst, India needs a reliable partner on the world stage,” Tillerson said, days before he departs for South Asia. “I want to make clear: With our shared values and vision for global stability, peace and prosperity, the United States is that partner.” India ranks just 130th on the World Bank’s annual survey on the ease of doing business. Yet Tillerson cited the growth of the two countries’ economic partnership, saying 600 American companies work there and that US investment in the country has risen 500 percent in two years. He said bilateral trade will climb beyond the record $115 billion reached last year, noting that a US shipment of crude oil arrived in India this month for the first time.
Citing India’s role as the world’s most populous democracy, Tillerson said the two countries “share a vision for the future.” He called for closer defense ties, citing a range of hardware the US is prepared to sell India, and said the two must work together to address shared security challenges. He added that he “couldn’t agree more” with comments by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis that the world’s two greatest democracies should have the two greatest militaries. Tillerson also called out China, saying that its rise as a global power had been carried out “less responsibly” than India’s and that the country’s leaders had undermined the “international, rules-based order.”
He reserved his most pointed remarks towards China and its push for greater economic influence in the region for the question-and-answer period at the end of the speech. He said China was offering financing that saddles countries with enormous debt and triggers that lead to default. Tillerson said the US has begun “quiet conversations” with countries in the region about other forms of financing.