Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to Russia and his hug to President Vladimir Putin seemed to have irked the United States.
Amid concerns over New Delhi's ties with Moscow, a top US official on Thursday said that a "bet on Russia as a long-term, reliable partner is not a good bet".
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan made the remarks while replying to a question on MSNBC about PM Modi’s recent visit to Moscow. He asserted that Moscow would side with Beijing over New Delhi in case of a conflict between the two Asian countries.
During his visit to Moscow, PM Modi held extensive talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"We've made clear to every country in the world including India that a bet on Russia as a long-term, reliable partner is not a good bet," said Sullivan, as quoted by news agency PTI. He was in India last month for a meeting with his counterpart Ajit Doval.
The top American official also met Prime Minister Modi during his visit.
"Russia is becoming closer to China. In fact, it's becoming the junior partner to China. And in that way, they would side with China over India any day of the week. And … Prime Minister Modi, of course, has profound concerns about the potential for Chinese aggression against India. Which we have seen over recent years," Sullivan said on MSNBC, as quoted by PTI.
Sullivan, however, acknowledged that countries like India have a historic relationship with Russia, and it's not going to change dramatically overnight. "This is playing the long game. It (US) is making investments in democratic partners and allies around the world including countries like India and we think that that will pay off as we go forward," he further stated.
His remarks came a day after spokespersons of the Pentagon, the White House, and the State Department reacted separately to questions on India's relationship with Russia and Modi's visit to Moscow.
PM Modi was in Russia for two days for the 22nd India-Russia annual summit that has been watched closely by the West amidst the raging Ukraine conflict.
During his talks with Putin on Tuesday, the Prime Minister told the Russian President that a solution to the Ukraine conflict is not possible on the battlefield and that peace efforts do not succeed amid bombs and bullets. India has not yet condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has consistently pitched for a resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.