US Snubs China On Joint Military Exercise With India
India & the United States performed a joint military exercise in Uttarakhand. China objected to it. But the US & India snubbed China & said, “It’s none of China’s business!”
The US has reaffirmed that it supports India in the face of China’s opposition to joint military drills between the two countries in the border state of Uttarakhand.
In a roundtable discussion with the media on Friday, Elizabeth Jones, the US Charge d’ Affaires in India, said, “I would take you to the comments from my Indian colleagues, that it’s none of their (China’s) business.”
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The Indian foreign ministry reacted angrily on Thursday after China claimed that the exercises in Auli, which are located about 100 km from the border, violate the spirit of two border agreements:
“India exercises with whomever it chooses to and we do not give veto to third countries on this issue.”
The combined training exercises had “nothing to do with the 1993 and 1996 agreements,” according to ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.
In response to inquiries regarding the matter, Mr Bagchi stated, “Since these were brought by the Chinese side, let me emphasize that the Chinese side needs to reflect and think about its own breach of these agreements of 1993 and 1996.”
Yudh Abhyas, India’s 18th joint military exercise with the US, is now taking place in Uttarakhand, about 100 kilometers from the Line of Actual Control.
Inquiries on trade and a potential priority agreement for India were also directed at the interim US envoy.
Since trade has increased by twofold to $157 billion over the past seven years, she claimed, “Nobody, in my opinion, thinks a trade agreement is necessary. That is not currently being discussed.”
Ms. Jones, the top American diplomat in India, also discussed communal rhetoric used during Indian election campaigns.
When questioned about the campaign that borders on racial hatred, she responded that the US government “will continue to raise it.”
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“This is a constant topic of conversation among our Indian coworkers. One advantage of our consequential connection is that we can talk about a wide range of topics, including easy and difficult ones, those on which we agree and those on which we disagree “She spoke.
The campaign in Gujarat, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is from, has shifted toward statements made by his party, the BJP, that have a communal undertone.
Amit Shah, the Union Home Minister, made the following comment regarding claims that Muslims were gaslighted during the 2002 riots: “Gujarat had no room for development due to the state of chaos. They attempted to engage in intergroup violence in 2002; as a lesson, we imprisoned them.”
