Kenneth Juster, Under Secretary of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security.

India should recognize that lowering trade barriers is as conducive to trade as outsourcing, says Kenneth Juster, Under Secretary of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security.

Juster told News India-Times in a telephonic interview that bilateral economic relations between India and the U.S. had improved but lacked their full potential.

“Trade with the U.S. has to be seen as a two-way street. There’s a perception trade is good when it involves outsourcing and not when it is lowering barriers to trade,” he said. “My argument is: lower barriers so that U.S. companies feel there is a level playing field and that benefits of globalization go both ways.”

Juster said: “A number of U.S. companies tell us that they feel the marketplace in India is not asa market as it should be.”

His view reiterates those of several Bush administration officials including Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and American envoy to India David Mulford. In an election year in the U.S., outsourcing of jobs to India has become a key issue with the Democratic presidential candidate Senator John Kerry linking it to the sluggish job growth.

The Bush administration has expressed some frustration with trying to press India to level the playing field or make motions towardsng up the economy and lowering tariffs to strengthen the White House’s stand of not opposing outsourcing.

“If you look at what bills are being prepared in Congress and in states, they are expressing frustration that India is benefiting from outsourcing but not the U.S.,” said Juster.

He was referring to more than 80 pieces of legislation in nearly 40 states in the U.S. that seek to do away with outsourcing of government contract work.

“There has been an overall qualitative transformation in U.S.-India relations, including military and political. And on the economic front there has been an improvement in relations but we have not fulfilled the true potential that exists for bilateral trade,” Juster told News India-Times.

“We would like to work toward reductions in tariff and non-tariff barriers, simplification in customs procedures, and improvements in Intellectual Property Rights protections,” he emphasized.

He said there was a need for further protection of data related to patent protection in areas of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. China, he said, was an example of a country that had overcome the trade restrictions imposed by Washington.

“When you look at China, we have a much higher level of trade despite the fact that we have more stringent export control measures,” Juster said, adding China has improved its infrastructure and, in some areas, lowered barriers to trade.

“We have discussed with counterparts in India a range of economic issues including steps that can be taken to improve bilateral trade. The response has been generally favorable but more needs to be done.”