Susma Swaraj recently had a meeting with Secretary of Defense & Secretary of state arrived in India. Discussion made about Security concern, trade & commerce, common defense, and US H1B Visa.
India has clearly communicated its expectation to the US regarding the H1B visa. Sushma Swaraj stated that a predictable, as well as a non-discriminatory process of acquiring the H1B visa, is expected from the US as the competitiveness, innovation, and partnership are dependent on it, leading to a healthy bilateral relationship.
James N. Mattis, the Secretary of Defense and Michael R. Pompeo, the Secretary of State have arrived in India to discuss the matters of security concerns, trade & commerce, and common defense with Nirmala Sitharaman and Sushma Swaraj, the Defense Minister and External Affair Minister of India respectively.
Since the rules and regulations associated with the system of H1B visa have drastically changed, Sushma Swaraj has requested to consider the matter with sensitivity. The balanced approach in the matter will ensure to boost the relationship between both the nations while improving the individual relationship between the citizens.
After the meeting was over, Sushma Swaraj confronted the media and stated that she has requested the Secretary to opt for a balanced and sensitive approach in the case of H1B visa. She further mentioned the sabotaged relationship between the people of both the nations due to the restricted rules of the visa. She has also approached the secretary to opt for the predictable and non-discriminatory rules of the visa.
She has specifically mentioned the positive relationship between the PM of India, Narendra Modi and President of the US, Donald Trump. As a result of this relationship, the Indians have kept their hopes high regarding the reconsideration of the visa rules.
The US has increased the fees for premium processing as well as the extension of the suspension of premium processing of the most sought-after visas for the Indians. As a result, the Indian professionals, who work in the US, are encountering severe concerns despite excelling well in the respective companies.
According to the US government, the tech companies of the US are misusing the H1B visa to hire the non-residents. Though the Trump administration had warned the companies not to misuse the H1B visas, they failed to live up to the expectations of the government.
The 2+2 talks between the two nations have been a huge success. This format was decided by the PM of India and President of the US during the meeting in June 2017.
India and the US have signed COMCASA or the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement that will enable a free access to the advanced defense system for the Indians.
The nations have also decided to secure hotlines between the ministries of foreign and defense of both the nations.
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