‘Modi Not Responsible for Ukraine War’ – Trump Officials Face Backlash in US

Washington (The Uttam Hindu): Amid attacks on India in the US for buying crude oil from Russia at a discounted rate, an influential American-Jewish advocacy group has come out in support of India. The group has condemned the criticism being made by Trump administration officials and has clearly said that India cannot be held responsible for the Ukraine crisis.

The American Jewish Committee (AJC), one of the oldest Jewish advocacy groups in the US, on Friday expressed surprise at statements by US officials and called for a reset of US-India relations.

The matter heated up when former White House trade advisor Peter Navarro called the Russia-Ukraine crisis "Modi's War". Officials associated with the Trump administration have been constantly accusing that President Vladimir Putin is using the money earned from India's purchase of Russian oil to continue the war against Ukraine.

In a post on social media, the AJC said it was “deeply shocked and concerned by the barrage of verbal attacks on India by US officials.” The group called Navarro’s remarks an “outrageous accusation.”

The organization wrote in its post, "We regret India's dependence on Russian oil for energy, but India is not responsible for Putin's war crimes. It is a fellow democratic country and an important strategic partner of the United States. It has an important role in the competition between superpowers."

At the end of the post, the group stressed on reducing the bitterness in relations and said, "It is time to re-establish these important relationships." This statement is being seen as a big diplomatic support in the atmosphere being created against India.