India-US 2+2 dialogue: New Delhi pushed to keep Ukraine out of the bilateral talks

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The war in Ukraine may figure in the 2+2 ministerial dialogue between India and the US due to take place later on Monday, April 11, in Washington despite an all-out effort by New Delhi to push it off the agenda of the bilateral meeting.

Washington may raise the Russian invasion of Ukraine on the sidelines of the talks. India will be represented by External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at the meeting.

While the dialogue has historically focused on only bilateral issues, people familiar with the development said the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing diplomatic crisis may impact the talks this time.

It comes amid a geopolitical deadlock at the United Nations (UN) as Russia continues its military assault in Ukraine, while Western allies led by the United States and European Union pile sanctions on Moscow.

Incidentally, the United Nations Security Council will be holding a meeting on Ukraine on Monday itself.

"The meeting between EAM Jaishankar and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken will go on for five hours. We expect the issue to be discussed cursorily but not mentioned in the official joint statement published later," a senior Ministry of External Affairs official said.

India's position on the Ukraine issue has been under global scrutiny.

Shadow of Ukraine

India has so far abstained from the three major votes held at the UN on the subject. New Delhi also abstained from a vote to remove Russia from the UN Human Rights Council on April 7. Last week, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stressed that India would put its national interest first when offered Russian oil at a discount.

These developments have led to multiple senior US officials repeatedly calling for India to reduce imports from Russia. While trade had come to a standstill since late March when global banking sanctions took effect, purchase of Russian oil by Indian oil companies has continued. Most infamous among the statements had been those by US Deputy National Security Advisor Daleep Singh.

A key architect of the Biden administration's sanctions on Russia, Singh had apparently told India that it shouldn't expect Russia to come to the country’s defence if China were to violate the Line of Actual Control as the two countries are now in a “no limits partnership." However, the White House later said Singh had not issued any warning to India.

"Ukraine (as an issue) is expected to be brought up by the US President during his virtual summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the beginning of the summit," a second Indian official said.

On March 21, Biden said that while some members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) like Japan and Australia have responded to Russia’s aggression strongly, India has been “somewhat shaky” on some of the issues.

Defence talks

In 2020, both governments marked the 15th anniversary of the inaugural US-India defence framework agreement and are keen on building further on this front, sources said. , they added.

With the two countries now also firmly within the Quadrilateral Securities Dialogue or Quad grouping of nations, defence has become a major point of discussion. The previous summit had aimed at improving India's position in the global supply chain of major defence platforms. Both countries have inked the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) and stated their intention to fast-track projects under DTTI.

“Earlier preparatory talks on the issue had seen discussions on a fixed timeline and parameters being attached to the process. Our commitment to defence innovation is widely known now in the US, and India wants Washington DC to rope in more private American players,” a senior official said.

While India has already been designated a ‘major defence partner’ of the US, Indian firms have struggled to get US defence orders in the face of competition from America's entrenched and sophisticated defence industry. The government has now asked companies to work with their US counterparts.

People familiar with the development said the dialogue is not expected to dwell on the issue of potential sanctions on India for its defence ties to Russia. "That issue has been cleared," a senior official said.

Last month, Moneycontrol reported that US assistant secretary of state for South Asian affairs Donald Lu had assured India that it will not face sanctions over its business and military ties to Russia during his visit to New Delhi.

The issue required a clarification by Washington after members of the US Congress demanded sanctions against India under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

The dialogue brings together defence and foreign ministers of both nations in an annual meeting. Established to boost the India-US strategic partnership and promote synergy in their diplomatic and security efforts, the inaugural summit under this format took place in 2018.

The arrangement began as the India-US Strategic Dialogue in 2010. It became the India-US Strategic and Commercial Dialogue in 2015. However, after two annual rounds, a decision was taken to carve out trade issues into a separate annual discussion called the ‘India-US Commercial Dialogue’, the last meeting of which took place in 2019.

EAM Jaishankar is scheduled to meet senior members of the US administration to further advance the Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.

The US State Department has said both nations will also sign a Memorandum of Understanding on Space Situational Awareness, which refers to the knowledge of the space environment, including location and function of space objects and space weather phenomena.