NEW DELHI: The US ambassador-designate to India, Eric Garcetti, arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday to fill a place that has been vacant for greater than two years, following a long-drawn course of for his affirmation within the US Senate.

“Namaste, Ambassador-Designate Eric Garcetti! We’re thrilled to welcome you to #IncredibleIndia and work with you to build even stronger ties between our two great nations. #USIndiaTogether,” the US embassy mentioned in a tweet on Tuesday night.

Garcetti’s nomination by the Biden administration had been dogged by prices that he neglected alleged acts of sexual harassment by an aide throughout his stint because the mayor of Los Angeles. Despite pushback from a number of key US senators, the Biden administration stood by Garcetti’s candidature, and he was confirmed because the twenty fifth US envoy to India in a bipartisan vote on March 15.

The final US ambassador, Kenneth Juster, who was appointed by former US president Donald Trump, accomplished his time period in January 2020. The hole between the ambassadorial appointments was the longest time that the submit of US envoy had remained vacant.

The US administration’s determination to face by Garcetti’s candidature additionally displays President Joe Biden’s confidence within the ambassador-designate and the shut ties between the 2 males.

Garcetti will play a key function in guiding India-US relations, which have expanded considerably in areas starting from defence and safety to commerce and expertise cooperation regardless of latest variations within the response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

India and the US not too long ago launched the initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET), a bilateral defence industrial cooperation roadmap that can deal with joint growth and manufacturing of army {hardware}. The two sides have additionally expanded cooperation within the Indo-Pacific area and inside the framework of the Quad, and the US has been seeking to India to behave as a counter-balance in opposition to the rise of China.

Despite strain from the US to take a stronger stand in opposition to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, New Delhi has shunned publicly censuring Moscow’s actions and ramped up the acquisition of discounted Russian crude.

Garcetti served as a naval officer within the reserve element for 12 years and was chosen by the Rockefeller Foundation as a Next Generation Leadership fellow. He studied Hindi and Indian tradition and historical past whereas at Columbia College, Columbia University and earned a Master’s diploma on the college’s School of International and Public Affairs. He was additionally chosen as a Rhodes Scholar and studied at The Queen’s College, Oxford, and the London School of Economics and Political Science.

A fourth-generation native of Los Angeles, Garcetti is a card-carrying member of the Screen Actors Guild and is an avid pianist and photographer.