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Top U.S. media have published articles stating the same. Does this reflect a change of heart in Washington, an intention to elevate India’s position on the world stage, which has been India’s wish for two decades?

What price has India paid to get the United States to make this acknowledgement? Diplomacy was underway in the past six months after it appeared that U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration would give India a cold shoulder, especially on the nuclear deal. Now a new wrinkle has appeared – binding carbon emissions limits – and Obama has made India the first test case.

The United States has asked India to restart dialogue with Pakistan, despite its connection to acts of terror in India. To assuage India’s hurt feelings over this request, Clinton did stay at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai, which was targeted by Pakistani terrorists last November. Her meeting with the families of victims was like applying balm to a festering wound.

Overall, India and the United States appear to be building a mutually beneficial relationship. India needs to modernize its industry and infrastructure and the United States can help by influencing its capital flow. India also has a highly skilled English-speaking labor force that can do the United States’ back office work.

India can reimburse the money earned through exports and the business process outsourcing and information technology industries by purchasing U.S. technology and advanced goods on a balanced trade basis, completely unlike China. If the United States plays it right it can have access to India’s 1 billion customers.

The flip side is that the United States could be misleading India with mere sycophancy. Indians are pleased by kind words, and Clinton may be supplying them to boost the Indians’ ego. The main aim of the United States is to ally with Pakistan to fight its war in Afghanistan and the frontier regions of Pakistan.

If the United States is sincere in wanting India to play a bigger global role, the litmus tests will be:

1. Rapid movement on the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal.

2. Reaching an accord on end-user monitoring of U.S. weapons and sensitive defense technology sold to India, which has now been completed.

3. Not pressing India too hard on carbon emissions.

4. Elevating India to a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council.

5. Reaching an early broad-based accord on investing in India.

Other than the economy, the United States’ central focus with India concerns Pakistan. The latter is much cozier with the United States than it was two years ago, having been bought over one more time with money and promises.

Pakistanis consider the terrorists who attacked Mumbai last November as their foreign policy tools. Although the United States hates this idea, all it can do is express public sympathy. In an endless game of arresting, releasing and re-arresting the perpetrators, Pakistan is shying away from its obligations. The United States is exerting some pressure, but cannot press too hard as Pakistan holds the strings on rooting out terrorism in its border region with Afghanistan. On the other hand, India will not talk to Pakistan unless the perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attacks are brought to justice.

Also, the United States is aware of China’s presence when it comes to negotiating any financial or trade deal with India. China’s rising military power and economic influence is now worrying the United States, as it does not know how to tame the genie that is already out of the bottle.

The United States erred by pumping too much money into China initially, and now wishes to build India up as a counter influence. This was former U.S. President George Bush’s policy, which increased foreign direct investment in India, gave it the nuclear deal, and allowed the sale of sensitive military hardware. However, this does not seem to be Obama’s policy.

The Obama administration highlighted China with Clinton’s visit to Beijing in February, while it maintained six months of silence on its India policy. In addition, a few unpleasant diplomatic missteps raised eyebrows in India. But is mistrust really vanishing now?

Clinton’s recent visit to India – without stopping in Pakistan – is a clear indication that the United States aims to de-hyphenate India and Pakistan. This 50-year-old policy was the cornerstone of mistrust between India and the United States during the Cold War. Previously, U.S. officials always insisted on visiting Pakistan whenever they visited India. But now Pakistan is hyphenated with Afghanistan, and U.S. Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke has a role in Afghanistan and Pakistan affairs only.

Before her tour to India, Clinton gave an interview to Pakistani journalist Anwar Iqbal of Dawn TV. Not much was said to either assuage or hurt Pakistan’s feelings for being left off her itinerary. Clinton did not mention Kashmir at all, though Iqbal brought it up several times.

Political problems aside, India needs money to spark a new look and produce quality goods for global export. If everything goes well, two U.S.-specific commercial nuclear sites will be decided in the next few days, which will start the bidding process for U.S.-supplied nuclear power plants.

The finalization of an end-user monitoring agreement for defense hardware will open the door for sophisticated technology to reach India. This will also give the United States a fair chance to secure India’s US$10 billion fighter contract. These deals would create about 100,000 new jobs in the United States for the next 10 years. Also, India’s imports of U.S. technology and goods could expand several times.

Trade and economic relations take precedence over everything else. Pakistan must be kept busy in its restive west and China’s displeasure should not be entertained, as neither likes to see India moving ahead economically. The United States should avoid making the same mistake it made with China, investing too much without getting China to revalue its currency.

India is hungry for technology and has a much bigger capacity to absorb Western technology and pay for it with its exports. The time is ripe for India and the United States to build a sincere and lasting partnership. But if Clinton is merely flattering India, the country could be taken for a ride one more time.

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(Hari Sud is a retired vice president of C-I-L Inc., a former investment strategies analyst and international relations manager. A graduate of Punjab University and the University of Missouri, he has lived in Canada for the past 34 years. ©Copyright Hari Sud.)