Energy cooperation most promising areas of India-US ties: Deputy Chief of Mission in US Namgya Khampa

Washington: Despite differences in perspectives on several issues, energy cooperation has emerged as one of the most promising areas in the US-India relationship, a senior official from the Indian mission said.

Crude oil, LNG, LPG and civil nuclear are key areas to strengthen energy cooperation between the US and India, Namgya Khampa, India’s Deputy Chief of Mission in the US, said while speaking at an outreach event organized by the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS) on Capitol Hill on Tuesday.

“We have a growing demand for energy in India and the United States has an abundance of energy, and I think that creates a natural partnership that we’re determined to deepen even further,” Khampa said. he said.

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“Crude oil, LNG, LPG, they all contribute significantly to India’s energy security and our partnership with the US is a key factor in this. They also support employment, investment and economic growth and we are happy to take this cooperation further,” he said.

The Indian mission official also spoke about civil nuclear cooperation between the two countries; A senior US State Department official also touched on this point.
“In this context, civil nuclear cooperation is a significant opportunity for both parties, and the passage of India’s landmark SHANTI legislation opens up new possibilities for commercial cooperation and brings us closer to realizing the commercial promise of the historic civil nuclear agreement we reached decades ago,” Khampa said. he said. Referring to the same incident, US Deputy Secretary of State Bethany Poulos Morrison said that the US-India energy trade relationship is rapidly expanding.

“We exchange goods through American oil, gas and coal, and both sides are exploring expanding civil nuclear cooperation under the newly passed Shanti Act,” Morrison said.

“US-India hydrocarbon trade has expanded significantly since 2025, reaching $14.4 billion to date,” he said.

Khampa said the India-US partnership has been described as one of the most seminal and defining partnerships of the 21st century.

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“I think the explanation for that is justified because we agree 100 percent and we agree on everything, not necessarily because we naturally disagree, but the strategic logic underpinning the relationship has gotten stronger over the years,” he said.

“And I think what we were able to build together last year and last year shows us the resilience of the partnership,” he said.

“Despite differences of perspective and position on several issues, it is the fact that what holds us together is the importance of the effort, the strength and resilience of partnership, acquired over two decades of commitment, vision and investment in what I like to describe as one of the most important strategic endeavors that India has undertaken with any country in our history,” Khampa said. he said.

The depth of this interaction helped us move further on the bilateral agenda, he added: “The truth is that there are many things that bring us together and make us stronger together.”