On Monday, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland met with Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla in New Delhi against the backdrop of US President Joe Biden singling out India as the only Quad ally with a “shaky” response to the Ukraine crisis.
Foreign Secretary @harshvshringla and U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Victoria Nuland @UnderSecStateP co-chaired India-U.S. Foreign Office Consultations.
— Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) March 21, 2022
Both sides reviewed progress made in the bilateral Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership. pic.twitter.com/ZYm8tJYzRt
Nuland’s visit to New Delhi comes during her five-day visit to Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka, wherein she intends to hold “Partnership Dialogues” with civil society and business leaders in an attempt to bolster the US’ economic partnerships in the Indo-Pacific region. She has already visited Bangladesh, where she celebrated the fact that the US has donated 61 million COVID-19 vaccines and $131 million in additional assistance during the ongoing pandemic. She wrote on Twitter that the US would continue to work with Bangladeshi authorities to strengthen democracy, labour freedoms, and human rights in the South Asian country.
Thank you to 🇮🇳 Foreign Secretary @HarshvShringla for a very productive set of Bilateral Consultations. We discussed all aspects of the U.S.-India partnership and our regional and global cooperation. @MEAIndia pic.twitter.com/wZyqTvxOlF
— Under Secretary Victoria Nuland (@UnderSecStateP) March 21, 2022
Following her stop in Dhaka, she then travelled to New Delhi. During Monday’s meeting, Nuland and Shringla highlighted the need to conduct regular “high-level dialogue and engagement” to intensify “cooperation across all pillars of the bilateral agenda.” In this regard, they agreed to work together on issues such as supply chains, health security, clean energy, and terrorism. They also discussed the upcoming 2+2 Ministerial Meeting to be hosted in Washington DC.
According to the Indian press release published following the meeting, Nuland and Shringla “reaffirmed their commitment to a free, open, inclusive, peaceful, and prosperous Indo-Pacific” and agreed to expedite the Quad’s “positive and constructive agenda” for the countries in the region.
The two leaders also talked about the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. However, no details of that discussion were shared, apart from the fact that it did not “overshadow” the meet.
The Foreign Office Consultations were conducted amid surging differences between the two countries on the Ukraine crisis and what policymakers in New Delhi could interpret as inflammatory remarks by the US President.
While addressing a Business Roundtable’s CEO Quarterly Meeting at the White House, Biden criticised India for its “somewhat shaky” position on the Ukrainian crisis. He said that the Quad and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have taken a strong stand against Russia, but India is the only Quad ally that continues to refrain from directly condemning Russia’s military actions in Ukraine.
India has been "somewhat shaky" says US President Biden on New Delhi supporting action (sanctions) on Russia pic.twitter.com/ehzqgBlx4e
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) March 22, 2022
In fact, India recently agreed to purchase discounted Russian oil amid growing sanctions on Russia, which include companies and individuals involved in its energy industry. In response, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that the US understands the reasoning behind New Delhi’s decision but warned that although the Biden administration will not be placing secondary sanctions against its key ally, India must avoid falling on the “wrong side of history.” She highlighted that the decision to buy discounted Russian oil does not violate US sanctions, but asserted: “The world is watching, where you are going to stand, as it relates to this conflict [and] whether it is support for Russia, in any form as they are illegally invading Ukraine.”