US Senator urges Defence Secy to discuss Russian defence deal, human rights issues during India visit

US Senator Robert Menendez has urged US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin to discuss India's Russian defence deal, human rights issues during his visit to the country.

Ahead of US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin's visit to India, a senator has urged him to take up the issues of sale of Russian S-400 missile system and human rights with the government.Lloyd Austin is scheduled to meet his counterpart Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, along with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit K Doval, during his visit to New Delhi from March 19 to 21.He is the first ever US defence secretary to include India on his maiden foreign trip. The talks are expected to set the stage for strengthening of defence and strategic ties between the two countries."Getting the US-India partnership right is critical to addressing 21st-century challenges, and that includes urging the Indian government to uphold democratic values and human rights," the report quoted Senator Robert Menendez, Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, as saying in a letter to Austin.In his capacity as Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Menendez plays a key role in influencing the country’s foreign policy and national security, said the report.Secretary warns against India's defence deal with RussiaMenendez said that if India chose to go forward with its plan to purchase the Russian S-400 missile system, it would clearly constitute a sanctionable transaction with the Russian defence sector under provisions of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act or CAATSA. “I recognize that India is not a US treaty ally and has historical ties with the Soviet and Russian militaries. However, if India chooses to go forward with its purchase of the S-400, that act will clearly constitute a significant, and therefore sanctionable, transaction with the Russian defense sector under Section 231 of CAATSA,” Menendez wrote.“It will also limit India’s ability to work with the US on development and procurement of sensitive military technology. I expect you to make all of these challenges clear in conversations with your Indian counterparts,” he said.'Discuss issues of human rights in India'While democracy and human rights issues do not come under the domain of the Pentagon, Menendez urged Austin to raise these concerns with Indian leaders.“The Indian government’s ongoing crackdown on farmers peacefully protesting new farming laws and corresponding intimidation of journalists and government critics only underscores the deteriorating situation of democracy in India,” he wrote.“Moreover, in recent years, rising anti-Muslim sentiment and related government actions like the Citizenship Amendment Act, the suppression of political dialogue and arrest of political opponents following the abrogation of Article 370 in Kashmir, and the use of sedition laws to persecute political opponents have resulted in the US human rights group Freedom House stripping India of its ‘Free’ status in its yearly global survey,” he said. "We should seek to partner with India to address challenges from China to climate change, but in doing so we cannot let our democratic values fall away. I urge you to raise the importance of democracy and human rights in your meetings with Indian officials to make clear that respect for democratic values is necessary for strong, sustainable US-India relations," Menendez said in the letter.(With inputs from PTI)