India plays down US ambassador Garcetti’s swipe over PM Modi’s Russia trip

India on Friday sought to play down US ambassador Eric Garcetti’s remarks critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia and New Delhi’s policy of strategic autonomy, saying.

The comprehensive ties between New Delhi and Washington give both sides the “space to agree to disagree”. Last week, Garcetti took a swipe against Modi’s trip to Russia, saying strategic autonomy cannot apply in times of conflict and that India and the US must uphold principles when other countries go against the rules-based order or violate sovereign borders. His remarks were seen as a criticism of India’s position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Asked about the comments at a regular media briefing on Friday, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal contended that the India-US comprehensive global strategic partnership gave both sides the latitude to adopt different approaches on certain matters. He also defended New Delhi’s policy of strategic autonomy.

“India, like many other countries, values its strategic autonomy. The US ambassador is entitled obviously to his opinion. We also have our own and different views,” Jaiswal said.

“Our comprehensive global strategic partnership with the US gives us the space to agree to disagree on certain issues while respecting each other’s viewpoints.”

India and the US discuss a range of issues under their comprehensive global strategic partnership, and both sides engage with each other on several aspects of the relationship. “We discuss all issues that are of interest to both parties,” Jaiswal said.

This includes discussions on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest, and it is not India’s practice to share details of diplomatic conversations or make them public, Jaiswal said.

Several key members of the US administration have been in touch with the Indian side to express their concerns over the India-Russia relationship and the timing of Modi’s visit to Russia, which coincided with a summit of leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Washington to express support for Ukraine.

Jaiswal responded to another question on India’s position on the recent attempt to assassinate former US president Donal Trump by saying: “Within hours of the news, our prime minister expressed deep concerns on the attack and strongly condemned the incident.”

Modi pointed out that violence has no place in politics and democracies and wished Trump a speedy recovery. He also expressed solidarity with the family of those who were killed or injured during the attempted assassination. “The US is a fellow democracy and we wish them well,” Jaiswal said.