Manmohan Singh a very wise leader: Obama

Congratulating Manmohan Singh on his second term as the Prime Minister of India, United States President Barack Obama today said Singh is a "very wise leader" whom he respects and is looking forward to visit New Delhi at an early date.

Obama told this to the new Indian Ambassador to the US, Meera Shankar, at his Oval Office in the White House. Shankar presented her credentials to the US President as the top Indian diplomat in the US.

During the brief credential ceremony, Obama conveyed his felicitations on the recent elections in India. He said that Singh is a very wise leader whom he respects. Obama said he is looking forward to visiting India at an early date.

Shankar conveyed the greetings from President Pratibha Patil and the Prime Minister to the US President and First Lady Michelle Obama. The envoy said that she was looking forward to strengthen the strategic partnership between India and the US.

Succeeding Ronen Sen, whose term ended on March 31 this year, Shankar arrived in the US on April 26. She was earlier serving as the Indian Ambassador to Germany.

BROWN CONGRATULATES PM

British Premier Gordon Brown has congratulated Manmohan Singh with the election victory of the Congress-led alliance, saying the Indian leader has done a huge amount of work in promoting economic growth and the relief of poverty around the world.

"I want to welcome and congratulate Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh who is now re-elected as Prime Minister,"
Brown said in a statement. Brown described Singh as a "very good friend" and said, "he's done a huge amount of work, not only in India but around the world, in promoting economic growth and the relief of poverty."

"I recognise that India's difficulties arise from the Mumbai bombing and what that has done, and the action that has got to be taken as a result of that. I hope we can have better and more secure relationships between India and Pakistan.

"I hope I can play my part in persuading Pakistan to focus more on the terrorist issues within its own borders. And I know that there will be general support for what I've called a regional strategy, where we deal with the crucible of terrorism, which is the south of Afghanistan and those parts of Pakistan that are controlled by, or are in the hands of, the Pakistan Taliban and al-Qaeda. So I believe we can make  progress over the next period of time," he added.