US urges India to 'utilise' ties with Russia, tell Putin to end 'illegal war' against Ukraine
New Delhi, July 16
US State Department Spokesperson has reiterated that it has ‘encouraged’ India to ‘utilize’ its relationship with Russia and the ‘unique position’ it has to urge President Vladimir Putin to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
US State Department Spokesperson Mathew Miller answering questions from the media in the US, on Monday, was asked how the US views that after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia, both the countries decided to boost their trade relationship.
Miller said India has a longstanding relationship with Russia and that is well known. “And we have – speaking for the United States – encouraged India to utilize that relationship with Russia, that longstanding relationship and the unique position that they have, to urge President Putin to end his illegal war and to find a just peace, a lasting peace to this conflict”, Miller added.
US had also asked India to tell Vladimir Putin to respect the UN Charter, to respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, Miller said, adding “that’s what we’ll continue to impress upon the Government of India, who is an important partner of ours, when it comes to their relationship with Russia”.
Miller’s comments have come a week after the White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, on July 10, answering media questions in Washington said “We also believe India’s long-standing relationship with Russia gives it the ability to urge President Putin to end his brutal war — an unprovoked war in Ukraine”.
Miller, had himself, on July 10, said the US “has been quite clear about our concerns about India’s relationship with Russia. We have expressed those privately, directly to the Indian Government and continue to do so, and that hasn’t changed”.
Modi during his visit to Moscow (July 8-9) emphasised to Putin that the solution to the Ukraine conflict lay in dialogue and not on the battlefield.
Modi told Putin during their bilateral talks that “there is no solution on the battlefield and that peace talks do not succeed amid bombs, guns and bullets”.
