As US President George W Bush prepares for his landmark visit to India, India Thursday said the relations between the two countries were undergoing a "substantial" transformation and it expects to gain access to international co-operation for enlargement of its civil nuclear energy sector.
"We attach high importance to stregthening our relations with our global economic partners. Our relations with the US underwent a substantial transformation in 2005 and we carry forward our strategic partnership based on the July 18 joint statement of the Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh) and the US President (George W Bush)," Kalam said in his address to the joint sitting of Parliament.
He said the government expected that the country may gain access to international cooperation for enlargement "of our nuclear energy sector based on the reciprocal commitments of India and the US in the joint statement".
The President said Parliament would be "apprised of the on-going discussions on this subject in this session. The India-US relationship also encompasses many more important issues. Major initiatives are underway to encourage the expansion of investment, trade and technology transfers, accelerate cooperation in agriculture, health and human resource development, in cooperation for energy security, a framework for defence cooperation and expanding cooperation on key global challenges," he said.
Bush is scheduled to visit India early March during which the two sides are expected to review the progress on the civilian nuclear deal signed in July 2005 during the visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Washington.
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