US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hailed India as an ‘ally and friend’ on Sunday — highlighting the ‘historical’ ties between the two nations. The American official also emphasised plans to build a “strategic relationship” with Pakistan, insisting that this was part of a “mature, pragmatic foreign policy”. Rubio claimed that such ties would not come at the expense of India-US bond.
“I think they (India) have to understand we have to have relations with a lot of different countries. We see an opportunity to expand our strategic relationship with Pakistan. I think the Indians are very mature when it comes to diplomacy and things of that nature. Look, they have some relationships with countries that we don’t have relationships with. So, it’s part of a mature, pragmatic foreign policy. I don’t think anything we’re doing with Pakistan comes at the expense of our relationship or friendship with India, which is deep, historic, and important,” Rubio said.
The US-India relationship has become increasingly strained over the past few months as President Donald Trump imposed a 50% tariff against most imports and announced a slew of restrictive measures. The POTUS has also been vocal in his support for Pakistan during this time — hosting military chief Asim Munir for an unprecedented White House lunch and taking several reconciliatory steps including the formulation of a trade deal and joint military drills.
The remarks came ahead of a Monday meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in Kuala Lumpur. Rubio also made note of Indian energy ties to Russia — contending that New Delhi had already expressed a desire to diversify its procurement of crude oil.
“If they diversified their portfolio, the more they buy it from us, the more they’ll buy it from someone else. But I wouldn’t prejudge or — I’m not negotiating trade deals. So I’m not going to speak on that. But I know they’ve (India) already expressed a desire to diversify their oil portfolio, even before all of this came up. So, obviously the more we sell them, the less they’ll buy from someone else. And, but, we’ll see where we wind up on all that,” he added.
The US-Pakistan ties have witnessed an upswing in the last six months, especially after US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Pakistan Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir following the military conflict between India and Pakistan in May.
While India rejected Trump’s repeated claims that he brokered a ceasefire between the two countries, Pakistan credited the US president for ending the hostilities between the two countries.
Rubio, responding to a question on the latest US action in the context of India, said both sides have “broader trade issues”.
They (India) will always be our allies and friends, he said.
New Delhi’s continuing procurement of Russian crude oil has been a major issue in the India-US ties.
The relations between New Delhi and Washington have been reeling under severe strain after Trump imposed 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods, including a 25 per cent levies for New Delhi’s procurement of Russian oil.
India described the US action as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable”.
In the couple of weeks, Trump claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi told him that India will stop buying Russian crude oil. Following Trump’s first claim, India suggested that there was no such conversation.
Last week, the US president dialled Modi and extended Diwali greetings.