The Pentagon has reaffirmed that the United States will continue to view India as a strategic partner and trusts that India will support efforts to achieve an “enduring and just peace for Ukraine.” This statement comes as Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded his historic visit to Russia.
“India and Russia have had a relationship for a very long time. From a US perspective, India is a strategic partner with whom we continue to engage in full and frank dialogue, including their relationship with Russia,” said Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder at a news conference in New York on Tuesday. With the NATO summit occurring this week, the global focus remains on these critical international relationships.
The Biden administration has expressed concerns about Modi’s two-day visit to Moscow. “But I do not think anybody will be surprised if Russian President Putin tries to represent this visit in a way that seeks to somehow show that he is not isolated from the rest of the world. The fact of the matter is, President Putin’s war of choice has isolated Russia from the rest of the world and it has come at great cost,” Ryder stated.
In response to a reporter’s remark that Putin does not appear isolated with Modi, the head of the world’s largest democracy, embracing him in Moscow, Ryder noted, “The prime minister also met recently with the Ukrainian president and offered assurances that India will continue to do everything within its means to support a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine.”
“We trust that India will support efforts to realize an enduring and just peace for Ukraine and will convey to Mr. Putin the importance of adhering to the UN charter and the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Ryder added.
The Pentagon’s statement comes as rescuers search the rubble of Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital, hit by a Russian missile on Tuesday during a massive daytime barrage that killed at least 42 people throughout the country. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reported on social platform X that 64 people were hospitalized in Kyiv, with additional casualties in Kryvyi Rih and Dnipro.
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