The United States sees an opportunity to expand its strategic relationship with Pakistan but insists it will not come at the expense of its “deep and historic” partnership with India, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday, ahead of his meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in Kuala Lumpur.
Speaking to reporters before leaving for the ASEAN Summit, Rubio acknowledged New Delhi’s concerns over Washington’s outreach to Islamabad but said both sides were “mature” enough to manage their differences. “But, I think they (India) have to understand we have to have relations with a lot of different countries. We see an
opportunity to expand our strategic relationship with Pakistan,” he said.
“I think the Indians are very mature when it comes to diplomacy and things of that nature. Look, they have some relationships with countries that we don’t have relationships with. So, it’s part of a mature, pragmatic foreign policy,” he said. “I don’t think anything we’re doing with Pakistan comes at the expense of our relationship or friendship with India, which is deep, historic, and important,” Rubio added.
US-Pakistan relations have seen renewed momentum in recent months, particularly after President Donald Trump met with Pakistan Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir following the military flare-up between India and Pakistan in May. While India denied Trump’s claims that he “brokered” a ceasefire, Pakistan credited Washington with helping end the hostilities.
On energy ties, Rubio noted that India had already shown interest in diversifying its oil imports. “They’ve expressed a desire to diversify their oil portfolio. Obviously, the more we sell them, the less they’ll buy from someone else,” he said.
Separately, President Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that India was “cutting back completely” on Russian oil purchases, while China was reducing them “very substantially.” He said he might raise the issue with Chinese President Xi Jinping during their meeting at the upcoming APEC summit in South Korea.
The Trump administration has maintained that India assured Washington it would reduce oil imports from Russia, though New Delhi insists its energy policy is driven by national interest.
Relations between the two democracies have come under strain after Washington doubled tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent, including a 25 per cent additional duty linked to Russian crude imports. India termed the move “unfair and unjustified.”
