West is our natural tech partner: EAM

Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Monday termed India-US ties as "structurally sound", expressed confidence that these ties will continue to deepen irrespective of political changes in America, and stressed that, in the broadest possible sense, India's natural tech partnership is with western economies.

- Prashant Jha

Speaking at the Global Technology Summit, hosted by Carnegie India in partnership with the ministry of external affairs on Monday in New Delhi, Jaishankar countered those who alleged that India was getting "overdependent" on the US, calling it a selective political and ideological label. He pointed out that the label ignored the "overdependence" on countries that supplied a bulk of basic goods, in an allusion to China.

But while favouring India's ties with the West and highlighting the contradiction with China, Jaishankar staunchly defended India's ties with Russia. He placed the relationship in a historical context, even crediting Moscow with "saving India" at times in the past, and explained the geopolitical logic of the relationship as being based on first principles of strategy, of convergence with a "neighbour's neighbour".

This was yet another signal that Delhi factored in the China challenge when it decided on its posture towards Moscow.