Key US Congressman to visit India

NEW DELHI: Reflecting intensification of high-level contacts to take Indo-US ties forward, a number of key American figures will be visiting India over the next few days beginning with a trip of Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher on Thursday.
Boucher, who heads the State Department's newly-reconstituted Bureau for South and Central Asia, will be here for three days during which he will hold meetings with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, Joint Secretary (Americas) in the External Affairs Ministry.
The talks will cover entire gamut of bilateral relations with the US, External Affairs Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna said, adding there will also be bilateral consultations on regional issues during the visit.
The visit comes less than a week after Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran's visit to Washington to discuss next steps on the areas of cooperation, including in civil nuclear field identified in the March 2 Joint Statement issued during the visit of US President George W Bush.
Saran had met senior Bush Administration officials, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns besides key Congressmen to push the nuclear deal. (MORE) PTI AKK PAL 04041859 DEL Boucher's visit will be followed by a trip by a number of members of the US Congress.
Senator Chuck Hagel, senior Republican Senator and member of Senate Committee on Foreign Relations will be here for three days from April 9. He is also Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Sub-committee on International Economic Policy, Export and Trade Promotion and a member of the Senate Sub-committee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs.
Speaker of the House of Representatives Dennis Hastert will also lead a delegation of members of the US lower House from April 9 to 12. The members of the delegation include those representing various House Committees.
The delegation will visit New Delhi, Mumbai and Jaipur.
Another Congressional delegation led by Senator Michael Enzi will also undertake a six-day visit here from April 11. The delegation will be accompanied by US Education Secretary Margaret Spellings and will include Democrat Senator Edward Kennedy.