Since Blackwill joined Barbour Griffith last year after leaving the Bush administration, there has been speculation the Indian government may hire his firm because of his strong stand on strengthening relations between the two countries and his proximity to the White House and State Department. Robert Blackwill served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Malawi, Ambasssador to India, and as a Deputy National Security Advisor to Condoleezza Rice.
India is on the verge of hiring a firm linked to former US ambassador Robert Blackwill to lobby with the Bush administration
India to hire new US lobbying firm
(IANS)
25 August 2005
WASHINGTON — India is on the verge of hiring a firm linked to former US ambassador Robert Blackwill to lobby with the Bush administration and the US Congress but the company is refusing to confirm the deal.
The Indian embassy says it is in the process of negotiating an agreement with Barbour, Griffith & Rogers International and that a contract is yet to be signed.
Barbour, Griffith & Rogers is a leading lobbying firm and its president is Blackwill, ambassador to India from 2001-03, credited with leading the push for strategic alignment between the US and India. Andrew Paraciliti, vice president at the company, refused to divulge details but said Blackwill had nothing to do with any negotiations. "Any announcement of this matter will come from the government of India," Paraciliti said. He said Blackwill was legally prohibited from representing foreign governments through a one-year "cooling" period, which began when he left the administration in November 2004. "He, therefore, had no part in the discussions on this matter between the government of India and Barbour Griffith." However, a spokesperson at the Indian embassy said: "It is through.
"It is our intention to engage the services of Barbour Griffith & Rogers to advice and counsel to further our objectives here. We are not revealing any details. The contract has not been signed but it will be signed soon," he said.
Since Blackwill joined Barbour Griffith last year after leaving the Bush administration, there has been speculation the Indian government may hire his firm because of his strong stand on strengthening relations between the two countries and his proximity to the White House and State Department.
New Delhi is looking to press its case in Congress and among policymakers, who include some non-proliferation hawks opposed to the civilian nuclear cooperation deal Bush announced with Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on July 18 this year.
Last month, at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Blackwill noted: "India's four most vital national interests mirror those of the US — winning the war on terrorism, dealing with weapons of mass destruction, managing the rise of China, and maintaining energy security in the Gulf."
India last November ended its $600,000 contract with Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld following Pakistan's success in securing a $3 billion aid package from the Bush administration that included more than a billion in weapons assistance.
