NEW DELHI (Reuters) – United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged India on Wednesday to focus on national supply chains and reduce its dependence on China for telecommunications and medical supplies as Washington ties with Beijing they deteriorate dramatically.
United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is seen during a press conference in the Marienborg castle garden, north of Copenhagen, Denmark, on July 22, 2020. Mads Claus Rasmussen / Ritzau Scanpix / via REUTERS
India had an opportunity to move away “China’s supply chains and reduce its dependence on Chinese companies in areas such as telecommunications, medical supplies, and others,” Pompeo said at the India-Business Ideas India Summit of India. , which was done online.
“India is in this position because it has earned the trust of many nations around the world, including the United States,” said Pompeo.
The U.S. administration directly blamed China for the coronavirus pandemic and accused Chinese companies like Huawei Technologies Co Ltd of cyber-breathing and facilitating human rights violations in China, charges that Huawei and Beijing deny. The United States also criticized China’s new national security law for the former British colony of Hong Kong.
The United States has told China to close its consulate in Houston in a dramatic deterioration in ties between the world’s two largest economies amid allegations of Chinese espionage.
India’s relations with China were strained after a border clash in the Himalayas last month that killed 20 Indian soldiers.
Pompeo accused the Chinese of starting the conflict, also denied by Beijing.
“The recent clashes started by the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) are just the latest examples of the CCP’s (Chinese Communist Party) unacceptable behavior,” Pompeo said.
India, which recently banned dozens of Chinese apps in the country, including the popular video app TikTok, has yet to respond to Huawei after allowing the Chinese telecommunications company to participate in tests for 5G networks.
India is the world’s leading provider of generic drugs and its dependence on Chinese raw materials for its drugs is almost 70%.
Separately, India’s ambassador to the United States, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, said New Delhi was open to American companies building manufacturing plants in the country.
India’s military confrontation with China sparked calls to tighten security ties with the United States and its allies, including Japan.
India is modernizing its military to narrow the gap with China and has increasingly turned to the United States over its traditional supplier, Russia.
“The United States has never more supported India’s security. India is also an important partner and a key pillar of President (Donald) Trump’s foreign policy, “said Pompeo.
Neha Arora’s Report; editing by Sanjeev Miglani
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