Washington, DC – The new ambassador of India to the United States, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar presented his credentials on March 10, 2014 to the President of the host country, Barack Obama in a ceremony at the Oval Office of the White House.
President Obama warmly welcomed Ambassador Jaishankar to Washington and wished him success in his responsibilities as India’s next Ambassador to the United States. The President said that US and India could accomplish a lot together.
Ambassador Jaishankar, in his remarks to President Obama, conveyed warm greetings from the President and the Prime Minister of India to him and the First Lady, Michelle Obama. Ambassador Jaishankar assured President Obama of his commitment to expand key pillars of the bilateral relationship including economic relations and trade ties, defense and security, energy, science and technology and global issues.
Jaishankar was appointed as the Ambassador of India to the US on September 12, 2013 in an announcement from the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Jaishankar, a career diplomat who joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1977 was the Ambassador of India to China when he was appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the US in succession to Nirupama Rao.
Arriving in December 2013 in Washington, DC when the tensions between the two countries were simmering hot, Jaishankar, in his true diplomatic style, kept the cool and worked tirelessly to tide over a series of issues such as the arrest of Devyani Khobragade, the controversial US actions on India’s pharmaceutical and aviation industry by US agencies, and the launching of the case against India’s solar program at the World Trade Organization by the US.