New Delhi: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will raise issues of human rights and democracy with Indian officials during his first visit to New Delhi as the two nations have more values in common on those fronts than otherwise, according to a senior US official.
Blinken is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi late on July 27 in his first visit since assuming the role.
During his stay in the country, he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and external affairs minister S. Jaishankar. The Ministry of External Affairs said in New Delhi that National Security Advisor Ajit Doval will also meet Bilinken.
The State Department’s acting assistant secretary for South and Central Asian affairs, asked on a call with reporters how high on the agenda human rights would be, with particular reference to the Citizenship Amendment Act, Thompson said the United States “will raise it.”
“With respect to the human rights and democracy question, yes, you’re right; I will tell you that we will raise it, and we will continue that conversation, because we firmly believe that we have more values in common on those fronts than we don’t,” Dean Thompson, the acting assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, told reporters during a conference call ahead of the visit.
“We believe India is going to be a really important part of continuing those conversations and building strong efforts on those fronts in partnership as we go forward,” Thompson said in response to a question.
India has previously rejected criticism by foreign governments and human rights groups on allegations that civil liberties have eroded in the country.
The government has asserted that India has well established democratic practices and robust institutions to safeguard the rights of all.
The government has emphasised that the Indian constitution provides for adequate safeguards under various statutes for ensuring the protection of human rights.
Thompson asserted that the relationship with India is a strong one that has endured through administrations of all colours and stripes in the United States and will continue to do so.
“We are looking forward to this opportunity for the secretary to talk with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with external affairs minister S Jaishankar, and continue to pursue the myriad areas of common interest that we have,” said Thompson.
“I think it’s fair to say that we see the relationship continuing at a very high level, and India will. of course. remain an incredibly important partner,” he said.
“We’re going to continue pursuing our global comprehensive strategic partnership, and I think by virtue of the President making the Quad and our partnership with India very high priorities right at the outset of this administration, it sets the tone for what we think we can achieve and accomplish with them, and with our other partners as well. So. I would expect to continue the dialogues that we’ve had on all those fronts,” Thompson said.
China, vaccines also in focus
According to news agency Reuters, Washington sees India as helping in US efforts to stand up to China’s increasingly assertive behaviour in Asia and beyond. Blinken’s trip will follow a visit by deputy secretary of state Wendy Sherman to China and coincide with one to Southeast Asia by defence secretary Lloyd Austin.
On Blinken’s agenda will be “Indo-Pacific engagement, shared regional security interests, shared democratic values, and addressing the climate crisis” as well as the response to the coronavirus pandemic, the State Department said.
The United States hosted a virtual Quad summit in March at which the countries agreed Indian drugmaker Biological E Ltd would produce at least a billion coronavirus vaccine doses by the end of 2022, mainly for Southeast Asian and Pacific countries, which have seen COVID-19 surges and where Washington has been competing in vaccine diplomacy with China.
However, India, the world’s largest vaccine producer, was subsequently hit by a catastrophic wave of infections and halted vaccine exports.
Washington sent raw materials for vaccines, medical equipment and protective gear to India and India expects to receive 3-4 million doses of US-made vaccines by August.
“(India) is such a critical country in the fight against COVID-19,” Blinken told MSNBC on Friday, adding that it would eventually become a vital source of vaccines to the world.
“They’re focused understandably on their own internal challenges now, but when that production engine gets fully going and can distribute again to the rest of the world, that’s going to make a big difference.”
Rick Rossow, an India expert at Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies, said he expected Afghanistan’s future after the US troop pullout and Indian concerns about that to be on the agenda in New Delhi.
“Vaccine cooperation has proven much trickier than diplomats would like,” he added. “The US and India have both found the political need to prioritise domestic availability of vaccines over any international agreement. But today the US has a glut of doses; India needs doses; and other nations across the region hope to tap into this channel.”
This story first appeared on thewire.in
