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Newsletter:  May 2003/ Issue 4
Promoting Stability in South Asia:  US-India Technical Collaboration

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) are currently working with the government of India to identify potential areas for scientific and technical collaboration. The efforts are part of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) US-India Science and Technology Initiative, and the Indo-US Science and Technology Forum, both intended to further US objectives in South Asia through enhanced relations with India.

The Indo-US Science and Technology Forum was established to encourage the exchange of ideas, research and development, and the transfer of technology. The forum is also intended to facilitate the organization of joint projects between the two nations.

DOE established the US-India Science and Technology Initiative to channel the skills and expertise of DOE’s national laboratory system toward supporting US policy objectives in South Asia. Under the Initiative, PNNL and LANL have been working with US governmental agencies and Indian laboratories to identify non-sensitive, practical areas of mutual interest for project work.

To date, the Laboratories have identified institutions and participants in both the United States and India to partake in potential collaborative efforts, and have planned a workshop series to identify key challenges in South Asia requiring technical solutions.

India has a vibrant scientific community consisting of numerous national labs, academic institutes and professional societies. It is anticipated that scientific collaboration will yield practical and political benefits to both countries, improving relations by increasing interaction, and strengthening stability in South Asia through finding solutions to regional problems.