US mounting pressure on India to open up its large market: CPI (M)

Warning that the US was trying to rope in India into its strategic umbrella, the CPI(M) today alleged Washington was mounting pressure on New Delhi to open up the large Indian market to American companies.

"Two days before the prime minister left for the US, an American official had said they will demand that India open up its insurance and defence production sectors to foreign investment and American companies," CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat said here.

At the concluding session of the three-day global meet of communist parties, he said "pressures will continue to be mounted by imperialism on India and we (the Left) will have to launch struggles to resist this."

In 2005 soon after prime minister Manmohan Singh met then US President George Bush, an agreement was signed by the two countries a few months later, which "laid the foundations of a strategic partnership" and imposition of conditions to implement "neo-liberal" policies in India, he said.

Karat alleged a similar situation existed now. "US imperialism wants to gain control over India's massive market,... We will have to stop this by launching big struggles".

Asserting that communists were in the forefront of popular struggles across the globe, CPI general secretary AB Bardhan said it was only at communist gatherings where one could see the parties of Israel and Palestine as well as from US and Cuba standing together, "symbolising the unity of the working people worldwide."