Exactly a week from now we’ll have a new American president, the 44th, and joining us now from Washington DC is Ron Sommers, the president of US-India business council, the man credited with doing so much for India, including the nuclear treaty.

NDTV: The questions we are raising is of course how will the new president engage with India post-February 2009 and the reason why we say that is because post-February 2009 India will also have a new government, if the elections are called then. So for Barack Obama or John McCain those will be the key priority items. How will the Indo-US economic relationship and the road ahead pan out? And will the recession worries force the US to look inwards and where will India feature in the list of priorities?

Ron Sommers: We had a surge in the stock market of 900 points on Tuesday, so I would argue that today there is much more sense of optimism in the streets regarding the upcoming elections on November 4. There would be a record turn out for this upcoming election so the take away is how we impart this kind of same enthusiasm in every democracy so that democracy indeed is participatory.

Before I go to the future, let us thank and credit George W Bush and his administration for all that he has done for the US-India relations. I believe either the Obama administration or the McCain administration is going to very strongly carry forward all the major themes that have been started by the Bush administration

NDTV: And yet the presidential candidates just don’t want to be like George W Bush and that’s the irony of the story. Despite India benefitting, none of the new candidates want to be like George W Bush or his last eight years. Don’t you think the concerns about recessions and the financial crisis is something which any new president would hate to walk into?

Ron Sommers: It’s going to be daunting. Clearly, it is a dark moment in the US economy. We’ve had it great for so many years and then quickly overnight, over the last six months we’ve seen Bear Stearns disappear to be absorbed by JP Morgan, we’ve seen Merrill Lynch be absorbed by Bank of America and we’ve seen Lehman brothers disappear off the map. We’ve also seen federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and we’ve seen AIG getting massive cash infusion from the government.

This has been quite daunting to even sophisticated people so in the end wonder where does it all take us? We need to get through this credit crisis we’re now in and ultimately its going to be markets like India which are going to be great anchors which pull us forward. I’m very hopeful that the Indo-US commercial relationship will actually benefit from this slowdown in the US economy.

NDTV: And how exactly would you want to see that happening? I was talking to CK Prahalad the other day and he says that India’s solution towards this recessionary environment would be the key to the future Indo-US ties. That would mean that India would feature very highly in terms of priority.

Ron Sommers: Well, there are only two one-billion person economies in the world: China and India. India’s the largest free market democracy on earth and it is growing at more than 7%. For example, just look at Boeing Aircraft and the selling into India’s civil aviation industry, an industry that in India is growing at more than 30 per cent annually.

Look at the half trillion dollars of infrastructure build out that needs to take place in India over the next five years, according to the planning commission. This means infrastructure companies like Bechtel and Black & Veatch being heavily engaged. So in the end strong, growing economies of China and India are going to be great opportunities for American companies. This will help lift us out for what we hope would be a shallow and a short recession. That’s the risk. We don’t want this to be a deep recession. We don’t want it to be prolonged and so we need to be working together as an international community and that’s why on November 15th it is so important that all the world leaders of the G-20 come together in Washington, including the prime minister of India, to put their heads together as to how do we make certain that we don’t spoil this extraordinary growth story that’s been going on now for a decade and a half.

NDTV: If the recession is short, how will policies be different? Do we fear some sort of populism taking over with the terms of engagement with India?  Obama says he wants to streamline H1-B visas and address federal outsourcing of jobs. Don’t you think these concerns in a recession hot economy makes a country more insular and in some ways while India’s an opportunity initially you will see populous politics taking over?

Ron Sommers: I think that the United States is much more sophisticated than it was back in 2004. There is awareness now in both presidential campaigns of the need to be engaging countries like India and that the world is now truly a global economy. The recent financial meltdown only confirms that we are all interlinked and nobody is basically independent. There are no islands right now and we are all connected.

And so in the end I think that there is an awareness now that we will be engaging in and not protecting ourselves. We don’t hear the sentiments of the protectionism that we heard previously in earlier elections. Yes, there has been some rhetoric but that’s for domestic political compulsions.

The reality is that the awareness in both campaigns and most importantly an awareness that’s been informed by the Indian-American community in the United States. Both campaigns are being briefed daily by the Indian American community. The community is playing a stronger role than they were in previous elections so both candidates are taking a forward leaning position on streamlining the visa situation on expanding H1-B visas, on movement of persons, and getting people moving back and forth between our countries more aggressively.

To make US companies more globally competitive, they have to source services at best values around the world. So there is a growing awareness and that education process is taking place across America, even in the hinterlands.

NDTV: Of course led by you, Ron I know how much you work in favour of India. The big question I want to ask you Ron, having seen what goes on in the business world and the fact that he’s been advised by investors like Warren Buffet the leading economist of the US, do you see his policies as something which US is clambering for today, more openness instead of closeness and more engagement. So in a way Obama if he does take the advice of his friends he would have a perfect solution  for the US and for India .

Ron Sommers: Well again I want to be very cautious here and be not tipping one way or the other in terms of partisanship. In the end we’re a trade association promoting closer US- India ties so whether its McCain administration or the Obama administration, what we’re seeing , particularly in recent days are very forward leaning statements about the importance of the US-India relationship. The need to be working more aggressively on streamlining our immigration policies and our Visa policies , the fact that we must embrace the concept of global sourcing but on the other hand we need to make certain that workers in America are getting a fair deal and therefore forward leaning Indian companies like the TATA group that are opening up operations here in the United States that’s going over very well so my point is that I see an engagement with India , between the United States and India that has now really gone beyond its tipping point . Both administrations whether Obama or McCain are going to be looking to aligning these two great democracies for the 21st century. This is exciting, this is the game changer for the 21st century and I believe both the presidential candidates see that.

NDTV: I’m glad you say that. Alright I’ll take your point . We’re beyond the tipping point so no more of homework that needs to be done, at least in terms of the mind space of both Barrack Obama and John McCain. We were talking about how we are beyond the tipping point and one example, evidence of that is the nuclear push that we’ve got to the Indo-US ties. How will the benefits flow to India, that’s one question we would like you to answer.  Also what kind of a time frame is expected for the benefits as we go ahead and do you expect any surprise element under either Obama or McCain in terms of a setback when it comes to the nuclear deal for India and the US. Ron Sommers your initial take, when will the nitty gritties of this play out?. Do you think it is going to be a long way of?.

Ron Sommers: In the end nuclear power development has a relatively long gestation period, but on the other hand we are already beginning to see the benefits commence. The US-India business council has been certified by the US Department of Commerce to lead a mission to India starting on December 2-9. A full one week mission to India where we will be bringing the president of GE nuclear and the other senior CEO’s from across America to India to meet with counterparts from both Delhi and Mumbai at the Nuclear Power Corporation of India  and then down to Hyderabad to look at one of the Nuclear Fuel treatment facilities. So a three city mission coming up it and will be the largest ever civil nuclear mission led by US companies arriving in India. But we must be appreciate that this is long gestation development. India right now has 3500MW of installed generating nuclear power. The desire over the next 30 years is to add that and grow that to 60,000MW that is a massive increase in investment and the United States company of course, having the best technology hope that we have a fair opportunity to compete on a level playing field and to work with India in that technological collaboration and developing not only India nuclear power generating capacity but the worlds power generating capacity. So this is very exciting. Again I would argue that it’s a partnership that is made logically based on technology, based on scientific know how where we’re going to be working together, not just for India and the United States but for the globe.

NDTV: Ron, of course we’re looking at the way it is going to play out again. The politics of India will also be key now that the deal is through. We’ve seen a major support except for the aberration by the NDA or the BJP- in principle nobody is against it. Ron Sommers, there could be some sort of red flags on the way to achieving this in terms of the time frame. If these benefits don’t flow in fast there will be questions as to what did the deal achieve for us. Also any fallout or any kind of a surprise element you see on the nuclear front? I cant really think of any probably you can give us a perspective but anything which could upset the apple cart?.

Ron Sommers: First of all, in the first initial phase, apart from developing the linkages and the partnerships and the relationships between our companies, there are some issues which need to be tackled. We need to sort out the civil liabilities issues, the nuclear liability issues. This is the convention of supplementary compensation, where if there were to be an accident at any facility in India, there will be a cap in liability and that is something that the Indian Private sector is embracing. If they want to see that happen we want the Indian private sector to be engaged in the civil nuclear program in India . Companies like TATA, Reliance, Larson and Toubro, I know are very sure of that view. We are very hopeful there could be some changes in laws in India that will enable the Indian Private sector to participate as well. But the first activity that is going to take place is going to be fuel sales and then probably equipment sales. That will be the first initial engagement and that’s great because that means the India Nuclear power corporation  and the National Thermal Power Corporation and companies like Damodar Valley corporation will  begin developing nuclear power facilities using American equipment . Then the next phase will actually be development deals- where utilities in America will team with Indian utilities and then there will be real development activity taking place between the two countries. But this is going to be gradual. After all we’ve just ended 34 years of nuclear isolation so this is a very welcome start.

NDTV: And I hope you do take some of the credit, the modest guy that you are, we all know that Ron Sommers! Let me try and get your concluding comments and that’s about what really lies ahead in the Indo-US relationships. The concerns for the future of the Indo-US ties and that is crucially linked with the engagement unsettling the geo politics of the Indian subcontinent and obviously I’m indicating that business is never conducive in an environment which is struck by terrorism all around  and that is a victim as far as India is concerned and the US as well. Also the India China comparative, Ron Sommers first on the geo politics of it. How do you see this playing out and how will it play out in the mind of the new president .. How will all this play as a burden on the mind of either McCain or Obama?.

Ron Sommers: That’s a very good question. I think what’s happened in the last 17 years since the opening of the economy in India . What we have seen is the emergence of the private sector players in India teaming now with the American private sector and I would argue that we both, the Indian companies and the American companies have done an excellent job of preparing our government leaders on both sides as to how truly we are partners going forward into the 21st century. I would argue that it is for the United States and India that will change the destiny of the 21st century. I think we’ve  done a good job explaining that to our leadership and therefore India is now viewed in American political circles as a tremendous beacon of hope and democracy for the world and that’s an extremely positive change from a much earlier mind set which is thankfully in our past . In terms of Pakistan and the instability that’s there , the last thing anybody wants to see is a failed state in that region of the world . India unfortunately exists in a  neighborhood which is a very tough neighborhood . We would hope to see other countries in that neighbourhood be drawn towards the beacon of democracy, towards the concept of a free market economy and therefore let us hope that we can encourage countries like Pakistan, like China to be engaging more so with India with the United States in free market democracy and not present challenges to all of us, to world peace and security. And so how does it play out? India is now viewed by America and by the American political leadership, in both political parties as the great beacon and anchor of hope for democracy in the 21st century. I would argue that we both have leadership responsibilities here and we need to be working closely together  to ensure that our lights are shining bright and that beacon stays shining brightly.

NDTV: With a new government in India, post February 2009 , do you think it will be a tough task for either Obama or McCain to be with a coalition of  future of which we don’t really know?

Ron Sommers: Yes, we’ve seen six prime ministers since the economical liberalization process. All governments have been supporting economic reforms. All governments have been encouraged to work closely with the United States so I see a very bright future ahead.