Last week, speaking at the Defense News Conclave: Stories of US-India Defense and Security Partnership in New Delhi, the US envoy to India, Eric Garcetti invoking the qualities of “trusted friends” remarked that the bilateral relationship is still “not yet deep enough” to be taken for granted and emphasised that “there is no such thing as strategic autonomy” during a conflict.
The Government of India’s Ministry of External Affairs rightly reacted to Garcetti’s remarks that, “India, like many other countries, values its ’strategic autonomy’. The US Ambassador is entitled to his opinion. Obviously, we have different views”.
’ Garcetti appeared to have forgotten what the former Indian Diplomat Kanwal Sibal had underscored several critical aspects of our relations. Sibal had rightly pointed out, India seeks strong relations with the US, but these should not involve limiting India’s foreign policy choices, especially when the US, imposes no such restrictions on itself, Sibal had said. Läs artikel