New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday backed the Narendra Modi-led government’s “neutral stand” on the Russia-Ukraine war, despite it feeling pressure from the West. During an interaction with Indian students at the Stanford University campus in California, he said that at the end of the day India ‘has to look after its own interest’.
Asked whether he supported India’s neutral stand on Russia, Rahul Gandhi said, “We have relations with Russia, we have some dependencies on Russia. So, I will also have the same stand as the Government of India.”
He said that India is a very big country where it would normally have relations with other countries. He said that it is not so small and dependent that it will be related to one and not the other.
“We will always have this type of relationship. We will have better relationships with some people, develop relationships with others. So that balance is maintained,” the former Congress president, who is on a three-city tour in the US, said. ,
Relive the captivating moments as Mr. @RahulGandhi graced the stage at Stanford University for an unforgettable interactive session. pic.twitter.com/IbcaPQ3o8y— Congress (@INCIndia) June 1, 2023
It is noteworthy that India has stayed away from the UN resolutions on Ukraine and has consistently underlined the need to respect the UN Charter, international law and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states. However, India has also consistently underlined that in the ongoing conflict, the entire Global South has suffered ‘substantial collateral damage’ and that developing countries bear the brunt of the conflict’s consequences over food, fuel and fertilizer supplies. have been
He also supported a stronger relationship between India and the United States and underlined the importance of manufacturing and the two countries collaborating in emerging areas such as data and artificial intelligence.
Gandhi said that it is not enough to focus only on the security and defense aspect of this bilateral relationship.
India-China relations are going to be ‘difficult’
During his interaction, Rahul Gandhi also said that India cannot be pushed around by China as he underlined that relations between the two neighbors are going to be ‘tough’ and not easy.
“How do you see India-China relations developing in the next 5-10 years?” Gandhi was asked, to which he replied, “It is difficult now. I mean, they have occupied some of our territory. It is difficult. It is not very easy (relationship).”
He said, “India cannot be pushed around. Nothing like this is going to happen.”
India and China are also locked in a lingering border standoff in eastern Ladakh for three years. Bilateral ties came under severe strain in June 2020 following a deadly clash in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan Valley.