JAKARTA — Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Saturday Beijing wants to boost cooperation in trade and security with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

In a policy speech on the last day of a three-day visit to Indonesia, the current chair of ASEAN and its biggest member, Wen extolled the virtues of an ASEAN-China free trade agreement (FTA) that came into effect in January.

It should be noted that the trade between the jurisdictions comprising the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China is not negligible. As the economy of China has shown tremendous growth in recent years, so too have many of the ASEAN nations. It is interesting that as both regions grow, they seem to create a mutually beneficial feedback loop in terms of trade and business. To quote further from the aforementioned article in the China Post:

“Last year, China became ASEAN’s biggest trading partner. We launched the largest FTA among developing countries and we have set the target of US$500 billion in two-way trade by 2015,” he said.

The administration of this web log highly recommends that readers click upon the above hyperlinks to learn more on this story and the issues associated therewith. It would appear as though the current trading relationship between ASEAN and China is highly beneficial to many of the economies concerned.

Meanwhile, of possibly more pressing interest to some, it would appear as though the United States Embassy in India is taking some precautionary measures in the aftermath of the recent announcement that notorious terrorist Osama bin Laden is deceased. To quote directly from the official website of the Times of India:

NEW DELHI: Immediately after the United States informed India on Monday about the killing of al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden by American forces in Pakistan, security was tightened around the US Embassy in New Delhi and consulates in Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.

“Besides asking Delhi Police to enhance its deployment around the US embassy here, the home ministry issued advisories asking states having US consulates to strengthen the security of these places”, said a senior home ministry official.

The administration of this blog again strongly recommends that readers click upon the hyperlinks above to read the above story in detail. Frequent readers of this web log may take note of the fact that the United States maintains the American Corner Bangalore.

Clearly authorities are taking precautions in reaction to recently announced events. It is likely that further information will come to light regarding all of these subjects in the coming weeks, months, and years. Hopefully, all of these precautions will prove unnecessary, but this remains, as of yet, to be seen.

For related information please see: business in China or US Visa India.

The U.S. Consulate General, the Consular/Visa Section, the Public Affairs Office at the American Center comprising of The American Library(AIRC), USIEF(United States India Educational Foundation) and the United States Foreign Commercial Service at Kolkata, India will observe the following American and Indian holidays in the year 2011.

*In lieu of Saturday , 1/1/11
** In lieu of Sunday, 12/25/11

The administrator of this blog routinely posts the holiday closing schedules of various United States Missions in Asia in an attempt to forestall fruitless trips by Americans abroad to a US Embassy or US Consulate only to find such Posts closed in observance of either an American or, for these purposes, Indian holiday. Those wishing to obtain a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, US Passport, or additional visa pages in a previously issued US Passport are well advised to contact an American Citizen Services Section of the nearest United States Embassy or Consulate. In many cases, an appointment can be made in advance over the internet.

Those interested in visiting the official homepage of the American Consulate in Kolkata please click HERE.

Individuals seeking a temporary United States visa for tourism (B-2 visa), studying (F-1 visa), business (B-1 visa), or cultural exchange (J-1 visa) are usually required to process their application through a Non-Immigrant Visa (NIV) Unit of a United States Embassy or Consulate abroad. It should be noted that non-immigrant visa applicants must overcome the legal presumption enshrined in section 214(b) of the United States Immigration and Nationality Act.

Those seeking an American family based visa are generally required to process their application through an Immigrant Visa (IV) Unit abroad after the adjudication and approval of an immigration petition at the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS). Although not technically an immigrant visa per se, the K-1 visa, a US fiance visa, is treated much the same way as an American immigrant visa for processing purposes.

Those seeking an L-1 visa or an EB-5 visa are also usually required to process an immigration petition through USCIS prior to making an application for an actual visa at a US Embassy abroad.

For related information please see: Consular Report of Birth Abroad.

The U.S. Consulate General, the Consular/Visa Section, the Public Affairs Office at the American Center comprising of The American Library(AIRC), USIEF(United States India Educational Foundation) and the United States Foreign Commercial Service at Kolkata, India will observe the following American and Indian holidays in the year 2010.

DATE	DAY	HOLIDAY	TYPE
January 1	Friday	New Year’s Day	American
January 18	Monday	Martin Luther King’s Birthday	American
January 20	Wednesday	Shree Panchami	Indian
January 26	Tuesday	Republic Day	Indian
February 15	Monday	Washington’s Birthday	American
April 02	Friday	Good Friday	Indian
April 15	Thursday	Bengali New Year	Indian
May 31	Monday	Memorial Day	American
July 5	Monday*	Independence Day	American
September 6	Monday	Labor Day	American
October 11	Monday	Columbus Day	American
October 14	Thursday	Durga Puja(Saptami)	Indian
October 15	Friday	Durga Puja(Ashtami)	Indian
October 22	Friday	Lakshmi Puja	Indian
November 05	Friday	Kali Puja	Indian
November 11	Thursday	Veterans’ Day	American
November 17	Wednesday	Id-Ul-Zoha	Indian
November 25	Thursday	Thanksgiving Day	American
December 17	Friday	Muharram	Indian
December 24	Friday**	Christmas Day	American

*In lieu of Sunday , 7/4/10
** In lieu of Saturday, 12/25/10

Some of the popular reasons why American Citizens travel to a US Consular Post or a US Embassy overseas is to obtain new passports, visa pages, Consular Reports of Birth Abroad, or notarizations from the American Citizen Services Section of the Consulate. Those seeking such services are well advised to check the operating hours of the American Citizen Services Section of the Consulate as well as the holiday closing schedule in order to forestall a futile trip to the Post due to unforeseen closure.

It should also be noted that many United States Embassies and United States Consulates allow those with business at the post to book appointments online. This provides the Consular staff with an opportunity to better prepare to provide appropriate services to those seeking Consular assistance abroad.

Those seeking a visa to the United States do not deal with the American Citizen Services section of most US Consulates and/or Embassies as American visa applications are generally adjudicated by either the Immigrant visa unit or the non-immigrant visa unit (generally for purposes of Consular adjudication of a visa application the K1 visa is considered an Immigrant visa).