Commemorating his one year as US Ambassador in India, he releases a video, highlighting his lived experiences, and extolling India-US relations going forward.
“Hi, I am Eric, the United States Ambassador to India, and today marks the one-year anniversary of my time as US Ambassador to this great country. I never dreamed I would have the honour and privilege of representing my country here in India, but what a year it has been, arguably over the last 76 years, maybe 2023 was the most productive year in our entire history with lots of agreements, lots of paperwork, lots of desi karak chai, and lots of accomplishments. So, come with me and let’s walk through the year in review.
Over the last 12 months, I visited over 22 states and union territories from Wagah to Kanyakumari, from Mumbai to Kohima, where I picked up some amazing friends, gotten some incredible gifts, and of course, eaten some great food.
And it was a banner year for trade. We reduced tariffs and had nearly $200 billion of trade between the United States and India. That is a lot of almonds for a lot of mangoes. UPI Gazab hai.
To promote peace and increase interoperability. We had a record number of military exercises last year.
From the seabed to the stars, the United States-India relationship is reaching new heights, including all the way to space, where this past year we made huge strides in NISAR, the first satellite that NASA and ISRO are making together that will blast off later this year.
We are doing our part right here. Whether it is expanding climate resilience and climate solutions through 10,000 new electric buses, we’re helping finance, or whether it’s the largest solar manufacturing plant ever put in southern India with US help, we’re making sure we walk the green walk, not just the green talk.
And then there is our historic health partnership. Where brilliant people in India and the United States are working together to come up with new vaccines for things like dengue, malaria.
And with visas, we got the job done. We reduced wait time by 75%, increased the number of visas by 60%, and made Indians the number one source of students from anywhere in the world, resulting in 1.4 million visas processed last year.
This past year, I have fallen in love with cricket and we are very proud to have announced this past year that cricket will become an Olympic sport in America at the LA ‘28 Games.
Moving forward together? This wasn’t a new peak. This is a new foundation for the work between Indians and Americans in the future. If we did this much in one year, I cannot wait to see what’s next.
You know what’s between you and I on the keyboard? Nothing. When it comes to United States and India, there is nothing holding us back.”
