Words of praise from the American President await Prime Minister Vajpayee at Avian when the leaders of the G-8 and the special invitees get together to reflect on World affairs especially developments in Post war Iraq. The US administration has expressed full support for the peace initiative that India has undertaken in Kashmir with the offer of talks to Pakistan. US sources here are specifically focused on the fact that despite a number of provocations, India has not substantively changed its position from the Prime Minister's offer of peace to Pakistan as announced in Srinagar in the thrid week of April.While there is no formal meeting planned between President Bush and Prime Minister Vajpayee, the two leaders will get a chance to exchange a few words during the course of the summit. It is understood from sources close to the administration that the President will express his support and appreciation to the Indian Prime Minister for the peace moves that he has undertaken with Pakistan.

By all accounts, Pakistanis residing in Brooklyn never had it so bad. Of the 120,000 or so of them living near here, about 15,000 have left for Canada, Europe or home, according to Islamabad's estimates. The departures began after 11 September 2001, when federal agents began stopping and detaining hundreds of Pakistanis, says a report in Washington Post. The exodus accelerated five months ago when the Department of Homeland Security ruled that every male Pakistani visa-holder aged 16 or more must register with the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Pakistanis, who ship hundreds of millions of dollars back home, make up the largest immigrant group of the 25 nations, almost all of them predominantly Muslim, named in the registration requirements. The immigration bureau acknowledges that more than 83,000 males have registered and that 2,747 are currently detained, but curiously refuses to specify the number of Pakistanis.

The Bush administration is closely following Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's visit to Germany, Russia and France as these are the three nations which had a marked difference of opinion with the US in the run-up to the Iraq war. The administration is still to forgive France and Germany in particular for the stance they took in the days leading up to the Gulf war. In the case of Russia, the suspicion is even more as many US officials suspect that Moscow played a role in the escape of several top Ba'ath Party activists and prominent members of the Saddam regime. As things now stand, these three nations are bending over backwards to get a piece of the Iraq economic pie. The Prime Minister's statement on terrorism in Germany has been welcomed by the administration which believes that Vajpayee is serious about normalising relations with Pakistan without " being trapped in the quicksand of conditions and preconditions". In specific terms, Amercan sources point to the speech the PM gave at the Indian community function in Berlin where he again extended his hand of friendship to Pakistan.

Indian American Dipak Jain has been appointed to the board of directors of United Airlines, the world's second largest carrier. Jain is the dean of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. "Jain is a leading-edge thinker with much practical business experience who will provide different and valuable perspectives to United's board deliberations," said Glenn Tilton, chairman of United Airlines. "We're particularly delighted that he's joining us now, as we re-evaluate our approach to the marketplace and our customer relationships," he said. United Airlines operates more than 1,500 flights a day on a route network that spans the globe. "I look forward to working with Glenn Tilton, the United board and United's management team," said Jain.

A U.S. court has named 24 groups that will divide a $10-million settlement by McDonald's towards customers who unwittingly ate fries cooked in beef-flavoured oil during the 1990s, when the fast food chain had said it used only pure vegetable oil. "The order is a final judgment within the meaning and for purposes of Illinois Supreme Court, as well as any law of the U.S. of any state or territory of the U.S.," ruled Judge Richard A. Siebel of the Circuit Court of Cook County. Several lawsuits had been filed in Illinois, California, New Jersey, Texas and Washington, alleging that the chain had deceived people who are vegetarians for personal or religious reasons. The maximum compensation of $1.4 million, or 14 percent of the award, is for Vegetarian resource Group, followed by $1 million, or 10 percent, for North American Vegetarian Society. The groups include Muslim Consumer Group for Food Products ($100,000), International American Gita Society ($50,000), Hindu Heritage Endowment ($250,000), Council of Hindu Temples of North America ($200,000), Guru Harkrishan Institute of Sikh Studies ($50,000), Hindu Students Council ($500,000), Jewish Community Centres Association ($200,000) and Tufts University ($850,000). The case was first brought to court by Harish Bharti of Seattle, Washington, who represented eight vegetarians. Several other organisations, including Muslim, Jewish and Kosher groups, filed their own complaints later.

Two U.S. Congressmen have written to Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee urging him to ensure the safety of Kashmiri Pandits and see that they are not sidelined in possible peace talks with Pakistan. In the letter sent to Vajpayee Thursday, lawmakers Frank Pallone and Sherrod Brown pinpointed Vajpayee's inability to mention a terrorist attack against Kashmiri Pandits in Nandimarg in March during his visit to Kashmir in April. At least 24 people died in the brutal attack by terrorists dressed in army gear. "We are deeply concerned about this apparent lack of a sustained effort to create a political and economic safety net for Kashmiri Pandits and therefore, we respectfully urge you to address this issue immediately," the letter said. "On April 18th in Srinagar, you expressed your sentiments towards Kashmiri Muslims who feel disenfranchised within the Indian polity. We request that you make a public address informing the Pandit community about how it can be included in Kashmir polity and in the peace process between India and Pakistan."

U.S. Congressman Frank Pallone has urged the Bush administration to lift restrictions on Israel's sale of a missile defence system to India. He praised the Bush administration for allowing the sale of the early warning radar system from Israel to India and said the president should also take the next step and allow the sale of a defence shield that protects land from short and long-range ballistic missiles, "as proof that the United States is serious about its relationship with India and about its support for democracy". Pallone, founder of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, made his request in a missive to President George W. Bush Thursday. Pallone wrote that "the sale of the Phalcon airborne early-warning radar from Israel to India is an important step in the progression toward strengthening U.S.-India relations and demonstrates an increasing confidence from your administration in an imminent and peaceful conclusion to the India-Pakistan conflict".

Indian American Sai Gunturi, 13, spelled "pococurante" to become the reigning king of spellers at the national Spelling Bee here. Some educators and scientists say music, especially Western classical music, helps students improve math performance. Gunturi has a combination of both Eastern and Western classical music. Sponsored by The Dallas Morning News (Dallas, Texas), the eighth grader from St. Mark's School of Texas, Dallas, not only plays the violin but also studies Indian classical music. He placed first in the Hellenic history and Greek derivatives categories at the National Junio Classical League convention. At the Spelling Bee he made his fourth attempt in the national finals. In 2000, he tied for 32nd place, in 2001 he tied for 16th place and in 2002 he tied for seventh place. Sai's sister, Nivedita, tied for eighth place in 1997, so the family's history of being involved in this tough competition goes back a ways.

After such tongue-twisting horrors as "gnathonic," "rhathymia," "dipnoous" and "hypozeuxis," the winning word for this year's U.S. spelling bee champion seemed almost simple: "pococurante." Sai Gunturi, a 13-year-old Indian American from St. Mark's School of Texas in Dallas, won in the 15th round on Thursday after two days of competition, with the finals shown live on ESPN television. After spelling the last word, which means someone who is nonchalant or indifferent, Gunturi said he was able to win because, "I guess I wasn't concentrating on everything else." As champion, Gunturi gets a cash prize of $12,000 from the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee. All spellers get a commemorative watch and a $100 savings bond.

The White House has described as "very good" the relations between India and the U.S., saying, "this is an ongoing issue of the top priority levels of the American government". White House spokesman Ari Fleischer made this observation at his regular press briefing Thursday when asked how President George W. Bush viewed the relations between the two countries on the 10th anniversary of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, a grouping of 163 U.S. lawmakers, drawn from both the Republican and Democratic parties. The caucus held a special function here last week to mark the occasion. An all-party parliamentary delegation specially came from India to interact with their U.S. counterparts. The spokesman was also asked to comment on the plea made at the function by both Republicans and Democrats to the Bush administration to pay more attention to India, particularly the terrorist threat it faces in Jammu and Kashmir. Fleischer said: "In terms of the commitment of this (Bush) administration to India and to peace and stability and to the reduction of terrorism, I think you have seen so many recent positive developments between India and Pakistan that are in part the result of America's active diplomacy in the region."