India, not Pakistan, is US long-term strategic partner: Lawmakers

Washington, Jan 13 Senior US lawmakers sought to draw a clear distinction between India and Pakistan in Washington’s strategic calculus, stressing that India — not Pakistan — remains America’s long-term partner in the Indo-Pacific and beyond.

Speaking at a discussion hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Representative Ami Bera said periodic diplomatic engagement with Pakistan should not be confused with strategic alignment.

“We’re not creating a strategic partnership with Pakistan,” Bera said, pushing back against perceptions created by recent political rhetoric.

He acknowledged that comments by US leaders can sometimes generate friction in New Delhi. “The president made some comments about Pakistan, had invited Pakistani leaders into the Oval Office,” Bera said, describing the diplomatic context during a recent visit to India.

However, Bera emphasised that economic and strategic realities clearly favor India. “You don’t see American companies making multibillion-dollar investments in Pakistan. That’s all happening in India,” he said.

Representative Rich McCormick echoed that assessment, describing India as indispensable to regional and global stability. “There is no more important friend that we’re going to need for the future of not just the United States and India, but for the entire stability of the world, than India,” he said.

The lawmakers said Pakistan does not feature in Washington’s long-term Indo-Pacific strategy, which is increasingly centered on democratic partners and economic integration. Bera noted that India has been central to US strategy across multiple administrations. “If you go back to the Clinton administration, through the Bush administration, through Obama, to Trump 1.0, to Biden, India’s been very key to our whole Indo-Pacific strategy,” he said.

Bera also contrasted investor confidence in India with the absence of similar momentum in Pakistan. “We’re playing the long game,” he said, adding that business communities understand the direction of US engagement.

McCormick said India’s alignment with US values sets it apart. “The commonality we have in the way we look at economics and freedom and advancement of a people,” he said, describing the foundation of the partnership.

While acknowledging that India pursues an independent foreign policy, McCormick said Washington understands New Delhi’s domestic priorities. “He’s doing it for the best interest of his country,” McCormick said, referring to Indian decision-making on energy and economic growth.

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