In India, Powell assures outsourcing won't stop

NEW DELHI -- Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, encountering theother side of a tempestuous debate in the United States, sought toassure Indians on Tuesday that the Bush administration would not tryto halt the "outsourcing" of high-technology jobs to their country.

In a round of conversations with Indian leaders and collegestudents, Powell found that the issue of the transfer of Americanjobs to India, known as outsourcing, by leading technology companies -- was as emotional in India as in the United States.

But whereas American politicians have deplored the loss of suchjobs, it was clear that the anxiety in India focuses on threats bysome in Congress to try to stop the transfer by legislation.

"Do you support outsourcing or are you against it?" a questionerasked Powell in the session with students.

"Outsourcing is a natural effect of the global economic system andthe rise of the Internet and broadband communications," Powell said."You're not going to eliminate outsourcing. But at the same time,when you outsource jobs it becomes a political issue in anybody'scountry."

The secretary told the students what he had said to reportersearlier in the day after a meeting with Foreign Minister YaswantSinha -- namely, that an appropriate American response to outsourcingwas to press India and other countries to open up to imports ofAmerican investments, goods and services.

Powell said one purpose of his trip was to explain that, becauseoutsourcing had created a political problem in the United States,India could help by lowering its trade barriers.

The secretary emphasized that he was making this request, not as acondition for the United States allowing outsourcing to continue, butbecause it was in India's interest to be more open.

The White House endorsed Powell's comments.

"The secretary made clear in his remarks that we are concernedwhen Americans lose jobs, and we are focused on creating jobs forAmerican workers, and the best way to do that is to open marketsaround the world, including in India," said Claire Buchan, aspokeswoman for the White House. "He also talked about the importanceof training workers for the opportunities of the future."