Team Blitz India
India and the US have decided to reactivate the Indian Ocean Observing System (IndOOS), a network of 36 moored buoys in the high seas to collect high-resolution ocean and atmospheric data for weather forecasts.
The issue of Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun will not affect the India-US relationship, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said in an interview with NDTV.
Describing the ties as “the most consequential relationship” undergoing a “historic era,” Garcetti compared it to a marriage with inevitable disputes. “How we manage those moments defines the strength of a relationship,” he said, asserting that the diplomatic efforts continue unabated.
Garcetti highlighted the ongoing commitment to the bilateral relationship, stating, “Our work every single day at the embassy, every single day at the Ministry of External Affairs, the Indian Embassy in Washington, has not slowed down one bit. It continues to accelerate because we want this relationship, we need this relationship, and we have this relationship.”
In November, the US Department of Justice alleged a foiled plot to murder Pannun, a US-based Sikh separatist, implicating an Indian Government employee. Despite this, Garcetti emphasised that such issues would not derail the strong India-US ties. Addressing concerns about antiIndia activities by Khalistanis from foreign soil, Garcetti pointed to the importance of free speech in a democracy, while stressing accountability for illegal actions. “What people say can be disturbing. But it is what people do that breaks the law,” he added.
Regarding the recent controversy over a report by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, Garcetti acknowledged the complexities of managing diversity in democracies. The report, which criticised India for alleged violations of religious freedom and recommended it be declared a “Country of Particular Concern,” was dismissed by New Delhi as biased and politically motivated. Russia also criticised the report as US interference in Indian affairs.
Garcetti reiterated that both India and the US are committed to managing their diverse societies within democratic frameworks, allowing for free speech and criticism. He suggested the US adopts a cautious approach, grounded in humility and self-criticism, to address such issues globally. “This independent commission looks all around the world at instances which might or might not be government generated… sometimes where we know prejudice exists between human beings and we highlight where those things are,” he said.
