Washington, D.C. . June 8, 2016 – Following Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to a joint meeting of Congress today, Chairman Ed Royce of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and a Republican congressman representing California, and other leaders of the this committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hosted a reception for the Prime Minister. At the reception, Chairman Royce spoke of the strong U.S.-India partnership. Following are key excerpts and video of the Mr. Royce’s remarks:
Chairman Royce first met Prime Minister Modi 15 years ago: “When we first met, Prime Minister Modi was Chief Minister in Gujarat and at that point, an earthquake had leveled Bhuj. And I remember we flew in with USAID the day after the quake. And my memory is of the Chief-Minister bringing order out of the chaos. I remember the leadership. I remember his efforts on the ground directing and setting an example. And as we watched the enormity of that perseverance and that entrepreneurial spirit of the people in Gujarat, what struck me was that the reforms you were bringing then, as Chief-Minister, they were bringing a situation where we saw 10 percent economic growth per year. It looked as though this was the type of leadership that India could use.”
Today, U.S.-India cooperation is better than ever: “We have seen the navy-to-navy exchanges. We have seen the cooperation on counterterrorism. We have seen efforts now that you’ve put forward to build up what we’re doing on space cooperation. And on so many different fronts that set this foundation, these two great democracies…are intent on seeing the same values. We understand that India is in a tough neighborhood, but we also understand that with your words here today, that you have, with that symphony that you spoke of, set a new note.”
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