WORLD NEWS | India, not China, better suited to resolve Ukraine crisis: US Congressman Bella

WASHINGTON, June 16 (PTI) — India is better suited than China to play a leading role in resolving the Ukraine war because of New Delhi’s old ties with Moscow, an Indian-American congressman said.

Rep. Amibela said he would be happy to see the Indian government use all of its diplomatic capabilities to help end the conflict in Ukraine.

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He said he was not sure whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Joe Biden would discuss the Ukraine conflict at a meeting in the Oval Office next week.

“I’m not sure (talks on this issue) will happen, but I definitely think India can play a leading role in helping us resolve the Russia-Ukraine crisis. India obviously has a long-standing relationship with Russia,” Bella told The Indian Press on Thursday trust.

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“The prime minister can have a dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin that we can’t. I think it’s in everyone’s interest to see this conflict resolved in some way. So, you see (Chinese President) Xi Jinping trying to negotiate Some sort of ceasefire or resolution. In fact, I think India is better suited for that role because of their relationship with Vladimir Putin,” Bella said.

Since the outbreak of the Ukrainian conflict in February last year, Modi has repeatedly spoken with Russian President Putin and Ukrainian President Zelensky, insisting on resolving the conflict through dialogue and diplomatic channels.

“We have said from the beginning that dialogue and diplomacy are the only way. To solve this problem, we will try as much as possible, whatever India can do,” Modi said in a speech at the G7 meeting in Hiroshima. , Japan May.

At next week’s White House meeting, Bella said Biden and Modi would discuss an economic partnership.

“There will be some conversations around trade relationships. I think they’ll talk about supply chains. India can be an important supplier of raw materials. They certainly have a mature pharmaceutical industry, but also in terms of technology,” he said.

There will be discussions around geopolitical security, Bella said, adding that it will relate to what is happening on India’s northern border with China and those border incursions.

“It will also be in maritime space. I think there will be conversations about defense relationships, and some opportunities for co-productions,” the 58-year-old Democratic lawmaker said.

At the invitation of US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, Prime Minister Modi will visit the US from June 21 to 24. They will host Modi at a state dinner on June 22. The visit also included a speech at a joint session of Congress on June 22. Bella said Modi’s state visit to the US was a recognition of the strength of India-US relations.

“The fact that the Democratic president invited him for a state visit and the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives invited him to a joint session of Congress underscores the bipartisan nature of the US-India relationship; the importance of how Congress and the administration view the relationship,” he said.

Bella, serving her sixth consecutive term, is the most senior and longest-serving Indian-American member of Congress in the House.

He is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the House Select Committee on Intelligence.

“(The speech in a joint session of Congress) gave Prime Minister Modi an opportunity to elaborate on how India sees its relationship with MPs; these important opportunities exist both in the economic space and supply chains, as well as in regional security in Asia.

“I think this is a platform that the prime minister can use to emphasize the importance of the relationship with India,” Bella said.

He said the US-India relationship may be the most important partnership of the 21st century.

“Coming out of the pandemic with the opportunity to build stronger partnerships in vaccine development in the pharmaceutical space, the defense relationship has been very strong.

“I expect you’ll see some announcements in the defense space after the state visit. So I think President Biden has been a leader in that space and will continue to be,” Bella said.

He said the pandemic was a challenge for the U.S. and India, asserting that Modi and Biden should look for opportunities around supply chains, joint production technologies and how to work together on artificial intelligence.

He said that under President Biden, the quartet has been elevated to the leadership level.

“It’s been emphasized. Usually people say, it’s about China, and of course China looms large in the conversation. But it’s more than that. It’s about economic cooperation.

“It’s about working together as major democracies. It’s about maritime security and freedom of navigation. I think you’re going to continue to see the Quartet grow in importance,” he said.

Bella also said that the diaspora is starting to play a role in moving US-India relations in a positive direction.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)