Joe Biden vows to back India

Washington: Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has asserted that if elected, his administration will stand with India against the threats New Delhi faces from its own region and along its borders and vowed to continue to rely on the Indian-American Diaspora, that keeps the two nations together.

Last week, Biden scripted history by selecting Indian origin Senator Harris, 55, as his running mate in the US presidential election. Harris, whose father is an African from Jamaica and mother an Indian, is the first-ever Black vice-presidential nominee.

Presidential elections in the US will be held on November 3 and the 77-year-old is challenging incumbent Republican President Donald Trump in the polls.

"Fifteen years ago, I was leading the efforts to approve the historic civil nuclear deal with India. I said that if the US and India became closer friends and partners, then the world will be a safer place," Biden, who was vice-president in the Obama administration, said while addressing the Indian-American community on India's Independence Day.

If elected president, Biden said, he will continue to believe this and also continue to stand with India against the threats it faces from its own region and along its borders.

Biden said that he will work on expanding two-way trade between the US and India, and take on big global challenges like climate change and global health security. If elected, the Democratic candidate said, he will work to strengthen the democracies where diversity is the mutual strength. On this day, let us "continue to deepen the bond that endures between our nation's and our people, Biden said. He said that "as President, I'll also continue to rely on the Indian-American diaspora, that keeps our two nations together, as I have throughout my career".