Live: Iran crucial for India's energy needs, PM to Hillary

8.19pm: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the visiting the US secretary of state that India cannot afford to simply snap ties with Iran in view of the country’s massive energy requirements and strategic business ties. 7.47pm: Clinton is reported to have discussed the problem of terrorism with the Prime Minister. She also said the perpetrators of 26/11 should be brought to justice.

6.00pm: Hillary Clinton is now at the Prime Minister’s residence at 7 Racecourse Road in Delhi for a discussion. She will meet Congress President Sonia Gandhi soon after. Clinton is widely expected to ask India to further reduce its imports of Iranian oil in order to put pressure on the country to stop its nuclear programme. India is in danger of facing US sanctions if it does not reduce oil imports from Iran.

Speaking about the issue at a public interaction in Kolkata, Clinton said Iran has been constantly flouting its international obligations, especially in terms of nuclear proliferation. She said that the international community has understood that Iran has to be pressurized into changing their behavior, and it was this pressure that has convinced Iran to come back to the negotiating table.

“India is a country that understands the importance of using diplomacy to overcome this difficult situation”, she said.

Clinton added that the US commended India’s move to reduce oil imports, but hoped the country will do more, especially as there are still adequate supplies and alternate ways for India to meet its energy requirements.

She said a decision on whether to exempt India from sanctions would be taken in about two months time.

4:30pm: Clinton reaches New Delhi. She is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi here.

1.09pm: Responding to a reporters question, Mamata emphatically denies that there were any talks on the Teesta water sharing agreement with Bangladesh. In relation to the issue of Foreign Direct Investment, Mamata said the issue of FDI was not brought up, but says “we will invest wherever we can, we will allow foreign investment wherever necessary”, adding that she would be happy if the US and West Bengal could work together.

1.06pm: A visibly happy Mamata says “Hillary Clinton said she wanted to meet me for a long time. She was waiting to meet me.” She adds that discussions had also centered on culture, tourism, IT and entertainment, and added that she had told the US Secretary of state to meet her again.

1.00pm: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is addressing media following a meeting with US secretary of state Hillary Clinton that lasted for over an hour. “We had a very positive, constructive, creative and concrete discussion”, she told reporters outside Writers Building. She also said that Clinton appreciated the West Bengal government’s passion for work and implementation of developmental policies.

11.05am: Clinton arrives at Writers Building in Kolkata, where she is greeted by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The meeting with the Chief Minister, the first such exercise by any US Secretary of State, is considered important as the Trinamool Congress chief had effectively stalled the UPA government’s efforts last year for FDI in retail. The Indo-Bangla Teesta Water Treaty and the issue of FDI in multi-brand retail, which have been opposed by Mamata, and other economic reforms are expected to be discussed.

Speaking earlier at a public interaction, Clinton said she was looking forward to meet Banerjee, as she was always keen to meet women who had broken through the glass ceiling of politics. “When I meet a woman who has broken through these barriers, I know that whatever her background, or her political beliefs we share the common bond of going through the fire of electoral politics”, she said.

10.55am: Clinton wraps up her discussion by saying that fundamentally the relationship between US and India is very strong. Barkha Dutt brings up issues like retrospective tax that has businessmen in Washington very worried.

However Clinton is unfazed. “I am very confident that this relationship will only get deeper and broader as time goes by. We can’t agree on everything. We have different perspective, history, challenges. But in the last three and a half years, we have created a mechanism for ongoing strategic dialogue where everything is on the table. I am very confident that our relationship can only grow”, she says.

10.45am: Clinton talks about dealing with criticism, especially on social media. She quotes Eleanor Roosevelt saying you “need to grow skin as thick as a rhinoceros”, and emphasizes that you can’t take criticism personally.

10.35am: Clinton brings up Hafiz Saeed, saying that she authorized the $10 million bounty leading to information leading to arrest, as a means of showing India that the US stands with it. She says that both the US and India with their pluralistic societies are the biggest threat to extremists because of their culture of tolerance. “The extremists hate tolerance. They want everyone to think the way she do”, she says.

She also brings up Pakistan, saying that they have made it clear to Pakistan, that the US wants to have a productive counter terrorism operative relationship with it. “Pakistan has lost more people in the last ten years to terrorist attacks than the US and India. It is in their interest and sovereignty to tackle terrorism and not cede grounds to extremist and terrorist groups.”, she says.

10.30am: Hillary Clinton is now talking about the touchy issue of outsourcing to India. A student asks if Indians now have to be worried about their jobs. Barkha Dutt brings up the Barack Obama cmpaign ad on outsourcing that has caused a lot of heartburn in India.

Watch the ad:

Clinton responds saying, “Well it’s an election campaign, so there is an obligation to talk about whats on peoples mind.” She says that campaign ad is directed at addressing the fears of people in manufacturing and don’t have other job possibilities.

However, she reiterates the importance of the relationship between India and the US, without elaborating further.

10.25am: Not to be outdone, a student from La Martineres girls school asks Clinton why the focus on Iran, when Israel is in violation of 35 UN resolutions. Clinton responds by saying that the US believes that the principal threat to the international community is a nuclear armed Iran. She says Iran is a centre of state supported terrorism, says that Hezbollah is a proxy, and adds how the US recently uncovered a plot to assassinate the Israeli ambassador to the US.

“You may think that these problems are far away for you, but if that is the case, why is Iran sending terrorist groups like Hezbollah into your country?”, she asks. The crowd is appreciative.

10.15am: It takes a student to ask the un-askable. A boy from La Martineres boys school asks her why the US wants India to reduce oil imports from Iran when India is not an oil producing nation.

Clinton responds by talking about how Iran has been constantly flouting its international obligations, especially in terms of nuclear proliferation. She says that the international community has understood that Iran has to be pressurized into changing their behavior, and says that it is this pressure that has convinced Iran to come back to the negotiating table. “India is a country that understands the importance of using diplomacy to overcome this difficult situation”, she says.

She says that the US commends India’s move to reduce oil imports, and hopes the country will do more, especially as there are still adequate supplies and alternate ways for India to meet its energy requirements. She refuses to be drawn into a question about waiving US sanctions on the country, saying it is too early to comment on that.

10.10am: Hillary Clinton is now talking about the ‘pretty hard glass ceiling’ when it comes to the role of women in both the US and India. She says she welcomed India’s decision to introduce a mandatory quota of a certain number of women participation in village councils, adding that a move like that would never work in the US.

The inevitable questions surrounding her possible Presidency have cropped up, and Clinton is fielding them with easy diplomacy. Responding to a question on whether the US will have to wait a long time for a woman President, she says “good lord I hope not”. She also reiterates that she does not want to run for President in 2016, saying its time she stepped off the high wire. Dutt tells her that she is the woman who can break that final glass ceiling, but Clinton is not to be persuaded.

10.05am: Clinton has started taking questions from the crowd. She is now addressing the role of youth in policy making and social decision making and the US relationship with India. She talks about the importance of substituting facts with ideology when it comes to decision making.

In terms of the nuclear deal between the US and India, Clinton says she hopes that the remaining ‘kinks’ can be ironed out in the deal, and that it can be implemented at the earliest.

9.57am: Barkha Dutt describes the meeting between Clinton and Mamata as one between two formidable women, to which Clinton quips that she doesn’t see herself as formidable, though others may see her that way.

Clinton adds however that she always looks forward to meeting another woman politician, because it is always much harder for women to get elected anywhere. “It’s true that we are judged differently, and held to a different standard. When I meet a woman who has broken through these barriers, I know that whatever her background, or her political beliefs we share the common bond of going through the fire of electoral politics.” She added that both the US and India had extremely contentious political systems, especially in terms of the role of women.

9.55am: Clinton says that visiting Kolkata was important to her on a number of levels. She said there was firstly the fact that West Bengal was an economic trade hub and had massive geopolitical significance. She also said that she foresaw the state playing a greater role in trade and economic integration going east, and that markets such as Bangladesh and Burma would open for it. She said that the US wanted to be a part of that future, and the visit was a demonstration of that commitment. demonstrating our commitment to that future

9.50am: Clinton alludes to her meeting with women who were rescued from the sex trade. She says such meetings help her put her work in a broader perspective.

9.45am: US secretary of state Hillary Clinton is emphasizing the growing links between the US and India. She talks about how both countries have strong democracies, and emphasizes how trade has grown from 9 billion dollars in 1995 to more than a 100 billion dollars today. She also talks about India’s growing position in the world, as both a regional and global power and says she is glad the country is taking on more responsibilities.

Clinton also talks about the strong people to people relationship between the two countries arising out of the thousands of visits back and forth. She also makes special mention of the contributions that Indian Americans contributions have made to the US in every walk of life.

She ends with a crowd pleaser quoting Kolkata’s favorite son, Rabindranath Tagore.

9.33am: Barkha Dutt is moderating a public discussion with Hillary Clinton at the La Martinere school for girls. She begins by saying that Clinton has traveled over 700,000 miles since she took over as US Secretary of state, which works out to around 25 trips around the world. Clinton addressing the crowd, calls Kolkata the hub of economic and technological hub of East Asia.

9.10am: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is to gift US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton with the works of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore and Swami Vivekananda during their meeting at Writers building, scheduled for 11am.

Meanwhile Clinton is also due to have an interaction with the people of Kolkata at 9.30am at La Martinere school for girls. The interaction is the result of a special request made by Clinton in this regard.

9.00am:  US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is due to meet West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at Writers building at 11am, during which issues like Teesta Water Treaty and FDI are likely to come up.

The meeting with the Chief Minister, the first such exercise by any US Secretary of State, is considered important as the Trinamool Congress chief had effectively stalled the UPA government’s efforts last year for FDI in retail. The Indo-Bangla Teesta Water Treaty and the issue of FDI in multi-brand retail, which have been opposed by Mamata, and other economic reforms are expected to be discussed.

Mamata Banerjee’s growing political influence and her strident opposition to FDI has made Bengal a crucial stopover for Clinton. For the TMC government, the visit is not without symbolism.

TMC leader Derek O’Brein said, “Bengal is no more about yesterday and day before yesterday, Bengal is all about tomorrow and day after tomorrow. I think it’s not only a good beginning for Bengal but also the stature of the Chief Minister of Bengal.”

The US is likely to look for trade opportunities in Bengal, with a likely emphasis on Walmart’s multi-brand retail which Mamata had opposed.

According to CNN IBN, Mamata Banerjee, who completes one year in power, this visit couldn’t have been a better coincidence. While Sunday was all about photo-ops, Monday is strictly business as the two powerful women meet for the first time at Writers’ Building.

The Left though has criticised Mamata for going over the Centre’s head. Biman Bose said, “Internal matters of the country can’t be discussed with outsiders.” Mamata might want to push her ‘Sandesh’ diplomacy with Hillary Clinton when she meets her on Monday but all eyes will really be on how she responds once Clinton raises the issue of FDI and Teesta.