WASHINGTON, Sept 28: A day after the White House publicly appreciated India’s support to its efforts to censure Iran over the nuclear dispute, a senior US lawmaker said on Wednesday that it was the US offer for nuclear cooperation that caused New Delhi to change its mind on this issue.
Congressman Tom Lantos, a ranking Democratic member of the House International Relations Committee, also said that its dealings with India should encourage Washington to “apply quid pro quo diplomacy to engender consistent support for US interests.”
During a hearing on UN reforms, Mr Lantos recalled he had offered strong support to the US offer to assist India in developing nuclear energy when the two countries signed the deal during Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to the White House on July 18.
“But then it became clear that India will fight against one of the prime US foreign policy objectives; namely, to put an end to Iran’s development of nuclear weapons, and India was going to vote against us at the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna on this matter,” said Mr Lantos.
So at an earlier hearing of this committee, said Mr Latnos, he made it clear that “India cannot expect (us) to accommodate her while she totally disregards our interests, and indicated great displeasure with India’s policy.”
He said his statement caused “a tremendous hubbub” in the Indian media and the Indian government also reacted strongly. “But last Saturday, India voted with us in Vienna because it decided it is more important to maintain its relationship with us than to accommodate the ayatollahs in Tehran,” said the Congressman.
In a surprise move, India angered Iran by joining the United States, Britain, France and Germany in backing the IAEA resolution.
