India’s Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh is in Washington this week. Mr. Singh is also the guest for President Obama’s first state dinner at the White House. While this social gesture might hold some symbolic significance, the central question is this: will the US-India relationship be nudged to the next level? Where does India figure in President Obama’s policy? Has the Obama administration made a series of small blunders in its South Asia policy as Fareed Zakaria noted? What is the status of the US-India relationship under President Obama?  Will this week’s visit shed some light and offer a clue on where India stands vis-a-vis the US?

Here is a round-up of some of some recent commentaries, analyses and news on Mr. Singh’s visit to Washington & the future of the US-India relationship.

Josh Rogin of NPR offers a sneak peek into Mr. Singh’s visit to Washington with comments from Ashley Tellis and Stephen Cohen. This piece paints the big picture and gives the context of Mr. Singh’s visit to Washington.

Newsweek International editor Fareed Zakaria offers his perspective in this piece aptly titled The Prize Is India and drives home the point that the Obama administration has a strong chance to strengthen its relationship and regain its strategic focus with India. Zakaria points out that South Asia is a failed tarpit that consists of dysfunctional states except for the long-functioning Indian democracy. But the question is will the Obama administration bag the prize called India?

Prof. Raja Mohan writes in a Forbes opinion piece that President Obama has a good chance of improving the US-India relationship, but cautions against the Pakistani army’s role. He highlights the powerful role of the Pakistani army and writes:

“The only institutional force that remains hostile to India in Pakistan is its army; it is a pity, then, that the Obama team is ready to buy into its new story about the link between Kashmir and Afghanistan. The sources of the troubles of the United States, Afghanistan and India stem from the unwavering dominance of the Army over national security politics of Pakistan.”

There are many dimensions to the US-India relationship and an important one is the US relationship with China and how that will impact India. The recent joint statement between the US and China has created quite a bit of storm in India. Lydia Polgreen of The New York Times captures the mood in India and describes what the mainstream media and analysts think about Mr. Singh’s visit to the USA. Predictably, the US-China questions seems to be on the minds of many people. Polgreen writes:

“The vague statement (US-China)  has been widely interpreted here as an invitation to China to meddle in India’s backyard, and prompted howls of dismay across the political spectrum. Mian Ridge of The Christian Science Monitor writes “pundits in India are more interested in the question of where the US’s new friendship with China, as well as its relationship with Pakistan, leaves India.”

Perhaps, one of the strongest pieces urging President Obama to seize the opportunity and improve its tie with India comes an opinion piece in today’s The Wall Street Journal . Written by Walter Ladwig and Anit Mukherje the duo offers their suggestions to President Obama. They highlight how the Obama administration maybe squandering an opportunity with India. President Obama needs to harness the current opportunity and  put the India-US relationship back on track is their primary piece of advice.  President Obama’s administration should not view India as a player, but as future power in this region the authors point out. The US needs to “first needs to clarify where India fits into both its Asia policy and its broader vision of the world. A statement supporting India’s bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council would send a reassuring signal to New Delhi.”

They go on to write that the Obama administration needs to do something meaningful on the first anniversary of 26/11 and they write:

“..the Obama administration should send an unequivocal message on terrorism by supporting India’s demand that Pakistan bring the perpetrators of this crime to justice. Islamabad’s delay in prosecuting the alleged plotters of these attacks has not only held up the peace process between the two nations but has also prolonged India’s national trauma. The attempted compartmentalization of terror groups on the part of U.S. and Pakistan—by differentiating between Pakistani and Afghan Taliban, or between sectarian and Kashmir-focused militants—needs to stop. The U.S. and India must present a united front against all these groups and their benefactors.”

Will we get a clearer picture of where President Obama’s administrations stands on India? We’ll hopefully know that by this weekend.