U.S. President Donald Trump has neglected the country’s vital relationship with India unlike his predecessors George W. Bush and Barack Obama, a former U.S. diplomat has alleged, ahead of the crucial 2+2 dialogue in New Delhi.
The twice-delayed dialogue was earlier scheduled for July 6 in Washington, but was postponed by the U.S., citing “unavoidable reasons“.
“The future is very bright for both countries, but the United States must fully prioritise and expertly execute on this relationship,” former U.S. ambassador to India Tim Roemer said in an op-ed in Foreign Policy magazine on Tuesday.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis are being hosted in New Delhi by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. This is the first ever 2+2 talks between the two nations.
“It is essential that it devote sufficient time and consistent effort towards anticipating problems and implementing an overall strategy that helps deepen this growing relationship and facilitate abiding trust moving forward,” Mr. Roemer said.
Mr. Roemer, who was a top diplomat in the Obama administration, remarked that it was a telling sign of how little the Trump administration had prioritised India that the critical relationship, where both sides stand to heavily benefit, was not moving steadily forward.
