US-India relations: fallout from killing of Canadian Sikh activist may complicate Joe Biden’s efforts to counter China
- The US ambassador to Canada says intelligence gained by the Five Eyes network led to Justin Trudeau’s linking of New Delhi to Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s murder
- India is being courted by US President Joe Biden as a ‘democratic’ counter to ‘authoritarian’ China’s growing economic and political clout in the region
On September 18, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rose in the country’s House of Commons to make an emergency statement on what he described as “an extremely serious matter”.
He claimed that “agents of the government of India” were likely behind the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar – a Canadian citizen who advocated the once-strong movement for a separate country for Sikhs known as Khalistan – in Vancouver in June.
He revealed that he had raised the issue “in no uncertain terms” with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, at the G20 summit on September 9-10 in New Delhi.
“Any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty,” Trudeau said, adding that Ottawa would pressure India to cooperate with the investigation.
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Canadian PM says authorities investigating ‘credible’ links to India on Sikh leader’s murder
The stunning accusations sparked a messy diplomatic fallout between Ottawa, Washington’s closest ally, and New Delhi, an emerging Asian power being courted by US President Joe Biden as a “democratic” counter to “authoritarian” China’s growing economic and political clout in the region.
A tit-for-tat dismissal of diplomats ensued, complicating US-led efforts to build a united bloc of allies and partners in a deeply polarised geopolitical landscape.