US Consul General concludes Manipur visit

Sobhapati Samom

IMPHAL, Jun 30  – US Consul General in Kolkata Helen LaFave concluded her three-day maiden visit to Manipur on Sunday.

During here visit, the Consul General highlighted some key elements of the US-India strategic relationship, including security partnership, development cooperation and cultural exchanges.

She attended the closing ceremony of the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Imphal (World War II) and was joined by Gregory M Keim and Colonel Larry Redmon from the Defense Attaché’s Office at the US Embassy in New Delhi.

“Seventy years ago, brave people from across the world came together in Imphal to cooperate and collaborate. That is the lesson – of cooperation and collaboration – I take from this historic event which unfolded seven decades back,” Consul General LaFave said.

As part of her cultural outreach, the US diplomat met with a group of Manipuri baseball players at the Khuman Lampak Sports Complex. Besides visiting the famous Mothers Market (Ema Keithel) during the trip, the Consul General also visited a US Government funded project to understand how the initiative has helped in the economic empowerment of Manipur’s conflict-affected women.

The project, managed by the NGO Foundation for Social Transformation, imparted intensive, tiered training, capacity building, and entrepreneurial skills to women who faced marginalisation and were least visible in the conflict zones of Assam, Manipur and Nagaland.

LaFave also paid a courtesy call to Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh and Governor VK Duggal, besides meeting with a diverse group of civil society organisations, journalists and young leaders who are alumni of US State department-funded leadership programmes.