Raised outsourcing, visa concerns: Nirupama Rao

New York : Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao has said that in her meetings with top U.S. officials she has raised India?s concerns over the Obama administration?s recent provocative stand on outsourcing of jobs and hiking H-1B visa fees.

Rao, who is in Washington, holding meetings with U.S. brass to set the agenda for President Obama’s upcoming visit to India in November, met secretary of State Hillary Clinton, undersecretary of State William Burns and members of the Commerce department.

Speaking to NDTV, Rao said, ?I raised it (the issues) in a number of my meetings. I was able to convey to them that the issue was of serious concern to our industry and essentially was perceived as a rise in protectionist sentiment in the US and we needed to address these issues.?

She said the relationship between India and U.S. was in such a state that issues like these needed to be addressed ?keeping in mind the larger purpose of this relationship?.

Rao also said in the course of her discussion that she saw America and India being much in agreement when they came to their policies over Afghanistan-Pakistan.

?We are both against terrorism. We are against extremism, and we see the need to overcome it.

We are for democracy, stability and development in Afghanistan and there is growing appreciation by the day in the U.S. about the role that India is playing in Afghanistan and the contributions that we have made to the development of that country,? she said.

?On the contrary, rather than differences I see growing convergence,? added the foreign secretary.