'This is just beginning': Jaishankar says, 'can do much more in US-India strategic relations'

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday (local time) assured that both India and the United States can do much more to intensify the strategic relationship between the two countries.

"Regarding the strategic relations between the US and India, I have seen enormous change and I remain optimistic that this is the beginning and we can do much more. I really think that there are structural convergences between us," Jaishankar said at a conference at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) here, hosted by former US ambassador to India, Frank G. Wisner.

"When I look at the probable state of the world economy, the fact that we are moving towards much more knowledge-based technologies and economies, the relevance of one country to another grows. For me, the human element is not important but it needs to be tempered by realistic expectations by a sense on both sides," he added.

Jaishankar said that a country can only determine its strategic paths or options.

He further noted that there is "a very radical change in the world". He said, "It will be a very different world because of the rise of China--a potentially global power," adding that the last time when the world saw the rise of global power was entirely a result of the Second World War -- the United States and the Soviet Union.

"This time it is a very visible rise," the minister stressed.

The External Affairs Minister also reflected on the pressing issues across the world, including the future of Africa, volatility in the Gulf region, and Russia's position in the Middle East.

"To me, the strategic framework of the foreign policy will be more of multi-polarity rather than multilateralism. Good diplomacy means a lot today than it was before. When I say this, it means the roadmap will not be clean," Jaishankar said.