'US sees India as a stabilising force in Asia'

The United States of America sees India as a stabilising force in Asia, according to Walter Russell Mead, James Clark Chase professor of Foreign affairs and humanities at Bard College and editor-at-large of The American Interest.

In an informal chat with a few journalists here on Monday, Mead said the US interests would be served best if all the countries in Asia were doing well.

According to him, China would not be able to dominate Asia if the economies of all the countries in the continent grow. Hence, the consensus among the successive presidents in the US was that India's growth was something the American government should support.

 

In this context, Mead cited that the Nuclear deal was a serious effort on the part of the US to support India's economic growth. The US, which was for favourable business deals with India, was also expanding its services in India.

Stating that the economies of Vietnam and Indonesia were also rising along with that of India and China, he said in such a situation no country would be "tempted to do what Germany was tempted to do" in the Europe during the 1940s.

Talking about the US economy at present, he said the country was now facing very high tax increases and stringent budget cuts. There is a possibility that the economy would slow down from now till November, this year. Thereafter, there was likelihood of a recovery.