Every country knows the importance of India in the Indo-Pacific region. Like China, India is also very powerful in this area. In such a situation, from the Indo-Pacific region to the South China Sea, India is the only country that can compete with China. America, the European Union and the whole world know this, so America and the EU want to deepen their friendship with India.
As part of their dialogue on China, the US and the European Union (EU) have discussed the importance of cooperation with India in tackling global challenges, including in the maritime sector, energy and connectivity in the Indo-Pacific region. The discussion on India was part of the two-day US-EU Dialogue on China and the sixth meeting of the US-EU High-Level Consultation on the Indo-Pacific. It was held here on September 9 and 10.
The talks were led by Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell on behalf of the US and Stefano Sannino, Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) on behalf of the EU. According to a joint statement issued by both sides on September 11, “They discussed the importance of the US and EU’s respective cooperation with India on global challenges, security, maritime sector, energy and connectivity in the Indo-Pacific region. The US and the EU also discussed recent developments in Bangladesh.”
They discussed ongoing and growing engagement in the Indian Ocean region, including support for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA). During the meeting, Campbell and Sannino reiterated deep and growing concern about China’s export of large quantities of dual-use items and materials used by Russia in its war effort against Ukraine and the continued involvement of China-based companies in sanctions evasion and circumvention.
He observed that China’s continued support for Russia’s military-industrial base is enabling Russia to continue its illegal war against Ukraine, which poses a threat to transatlantic as well as global security and stability.
He reiterated his expectation that China, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), should act in support of international law, including the UN Charter. He reminded that any peace proposal in Ukraine should be based on the UN Charter and its principles, including respect for sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, and consistent with continued efforts to maintain the international rules-based order.