ABSTRACT
Strategic relations between the United States and India, historically beset by mutual animosity and mistrust, are in the midst of significant improvement. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s visit to India in March, 2005 typified the changing temper of dialogue between the two states. Despite the Bush administration’s decision to sell F-16 aircraft to Pakistan, a move that prompted intense outcry from New Delhi in the 1990s, India’s response was more reflective of annoyance than rage. In many respects, the India-US relationship is evolving in response to the changing role of India as a regional power (and potential counterweight to China), the growth of India’s economy and its attendant impact on US interests in such varied realms as energy policy planning and foreign trade, and Washington’s interest in continued stability in the subcontinent in light of its stated objectives in the war on terrorism.
