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India gets a ‘free pass’ from US on rights concerns as China rivalry deepens

  • Senior US officials say rising concerns about China under President Xi Jinping have helped drive the United States and India even closer together
  • Washington’s decision to stay quiet on troubling developments in India is an example of new strategic realities in the wider contest for control

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US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi share a laugh in Tokyo at the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework in May last year. Photo: EPA-EFE
Bloomberg
US President Joe Biden’s administration has decided to remain publicly quiet on India’s democratic backsliding, according to senior officials, as Washington intensifies efforts to keep New Delhi on its side in the rivalry with China.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pressure on religious minorities and the media is troubling, as is his party’s targeting of opposition lawmakers, said the US officials, who asked not to be identified discussing internal deliberations. But the decision to largely refrain from criticising Modi comes as growing concerns about China make India increasingly crucial to US geopolitical and economic goals in the Indo-Pacific.
The decision on handling India is an example of how Biden’s emphasis on human rights – and his framing of a global conflict between democracies and autocracies – has run up against the strategic realities of a world where rivals such as China and Russia are vying for greater control.

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So while Delhi’s strong defence ties with Russia and its vast purchases of Russian crude have drawn scrutiny from US lawmakers after the invasion of Ukraine, the administration believes it needs India to buy that oil to keep prices low. And rising concerns about China’s growing assertiveness under President Xi Jinping have helped drive the United States and India even closer together, these people said.
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“India is getting this free pass on account of China,” said Manoj Joshi, a fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in Delhi who has advised previous Indian administrations on national security issues. “The only country in Asia, in terms of size and potential, that can balance China is India.”

In a sign of the close ties, Biden is set to host Modi for a state dinner in Washington this summer. While Biden might press Modi to take a more explicit stance on Ukraine, one US official said it’s doubtful Delhi would publicly rebuke Russia, given their close defence ties.

Asked whether the administration is reluctant to criticise Modi, John Kirby, spokesman for the National Security Council, said in a statement, “As we do with other nations around the world, we regularly engage with Indian government officials at senior levels on human rights concerns, including freedom of religion or belief.”

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