White House official says India’s position at the UN over the war is ‘unsatisfactory’ but also ‘unsurprising’ given its ties with Russia.
As India abstained from taking a stand on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the US reiterated that India’s stand is “unsatisfactory,” but given the historical relationship with Russia, it was also “unsurprising.” Mira Rapp-Hooper, director for the Indo-Pacific on the White House National Security Council, told an online forum hosted by Washington’s School of Advanced International Studies.
“I think we would certainly all acknowledge and agree that when it comes to votes at the U.N., India’s position on the current crisis has been unsatisfactory, to say the least. But it’s also been totally unsurprising.” According to Rapp-Hooper, New Delhi has moved closer to Russia after its relationship with China has worsened.
“I think our perspective would be that the way forward involves keeping India close, thinking hard about how to present it with options, so that it can continue to provide for its strategic autonomy,” she added. The remark from the White House came a day after external affairs minister S Jaishankar’s statement on Ukraine.
The minister said India’s stand on Ukraine was based on six principles, which included an immediate cessation of violence and an end to hostilities, a return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy and the global order being anchored on international law, the UN Charter and respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty of all states.
“This is not some relativistic issue. This is a choice between good and evil. And all democracies need to step up. Let’s increase the sanctions. Let’s get them more weapons.
Let’s make sure we do all we can to turn off any ability to evade the sanctions,” Senator Mark Warner told Fox News in an interview. India is a member of the Quad Alliance which also includes the United States, Australia and Japan.
However, New Delhi is the only member that has not announced any sanctions on Moscow. US President Joe Biden said, “The Quad is, with the possible exception of India being somewhat shaky on some of this, but Japan has been extremely strong — so has Australia — in terms of dealing with Putin’s aggression.”
Published By : Ankit Singh
Edited By : Khushi Thakur
