Joe Biden began an exchange with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, at a time when their relationship is going through a phase of uncertainty, linked to India’s very cautious positioning in the face of the invasion of Ukraine.
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The American president praised the “deep connection” between the two countries and expressed his wish to “continue (the) close consultations” in the face of the war in Ukraine, at the start of the virtual meeting, in front of a large screen on which appeared the Indian Prime Minister.
The latter for his part thanked his interlocutor for having taken the initiative of this exchange, affirming that the two countries were “natural partners”.
Narendra Modi described the situation in Ukraine as “very worrying”, and recalled that India supported the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia; while delivering medical assistance to Kyiv.
Joe Biden, speaking from the White House, was seated at a large conference table surrounded by the two countries’ defense and foreign ministers, who are holding their own face-to-face meeting on Monday.
Joe Biden had recently described India as “hesitant” in the face of Russia, a term which, for those accustomed to diplomatic turns, denotes a certain annoyance.
The Biden administration, which wants to consolidate American alliances in the Asia-Pacific zone to deal with China, and in particular relaunch the so-called “Quad” format (United States, India, Australia and Japan), is for the less embarrassed by New Delhi’s positioning since the start of the war in Ukraine.
India has so far refused to join votes condemning Moscow at the United Nations.
New Delhi calls Moscow a “key pillar” of Indian foreign policy because of its “strategic partnership” for its national security.
rupee and ruble
The United States has already warned that any country that actively helps Russia circumvent international sanctions will suffer “consequences”.
And this while, according to the press, India and Russia are working on a payment mechanism in rupees and rubles to facilitate their exchanges and circumvent Western sanctions imposed on Russian banks.
New Delhi and Moscow have had close ties since the Cold War, and Russia remains India’s biggest arms supplier.
Besides oil and arms, India imports fertilizers and rough diamonds from Russia. It exports pharmaceutical products, tea and coffee there.
The White House, well aware of India’s dependence on Russia in military matters, nevertheless intends to maintain a close dialogue with New Delhi.
She recently dispatched one of Joe Biden’s top security advisers, Daleep Singh, to the Indian capital for a series of conversations later described as “productive”.
This visit moreover almost coincided with that of the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, who went to New Delhi to praise India’s balanced approach, according to him, in the face of the war in Ukraine.
On the American side, efforts are being made to convince India that betting on Russia will eventually weaken it against China, whose affirmation in the Asia-Pacific worries both Washington and New Delhi.
The last clash between Chinese and Indian soldiers on the line of control, on the border of Tibet and the Indian region of Ladakh, dates only from June 2020.
And last Thursday, India claimed to have thwarted a cyberattack launched by Chinese hackers against its power grid.