Baker Institute expert available to discuss Indian prime minister’s US visit

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David Ruth
713-348-6327
druth@rice.edu

Jeff Falk
713-348-6775
jfalk@rice.edu

Baker Institute expert available to discuss Indian prime minister’s US visit
Green: ‘Obama administration would do well to find the motivation to persevere’

HOUSTON – (Sept. 27, 2013) – Outgoing Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s final visit to the White House today marks an opportunity to evaluate the future prospects of U.S.-India relations, according to an international economics expert at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Russell Green

Russell Green, the Baker Institute’s Will Clayton Fellow in International Economics and an adjunct assistant professor of economics at Rice, said the difficulty many American companies have operating in India is mirrored in U.S. foreign policy engagement, where officials often find themselves discouraged by the limited progress they make on their India agendas. Green served as the U.S. Treasury Department’s first financial attaché to India from 2008 to 2011.

“Many presidents and their administrations have written off India as a potential partner by the end of their time in office,” Green said. “Nonetheless, the Obama administration would do well on Singh’s last visit to find the motivation to persevere. Relations with India will get easier, and they will eventually bear fruit.”

Green said India’s various developmental challenges help explain some of the ponderous pace. “Even the Indian government itself is underdeveloped relative to the demands of its economy and diplomatic stature,” he said.

Green concluded: “We are playing a long-term game, and the field is tilting to our advantage. While near-term wins on trade issues would please U.S. interests, few items on the bilateral agenda are truly urgent. The goal should be positioning the U.S. to gain in the long run from India’s future growth.”

The Baker Institute has a radio and television studio available for media who want to schedule an interview with Green. For more information, contact Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775.

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Related materials:

Green biography: http://bakerinstitute.org/personnel/fellows-scholars/rgreen.

Founded in 1993, the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University in Houston ranks among the top 20 university-affiliated think tanks globally and top 30 think tanks in the United States. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows and Rice University scholars. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blogs.chron.com/bakerblog.