EU says India’s Russian oil purchases, military drills hinder closer ties

8 comments

1. SS: India’s participation in military exercises with Moscow and its purchases of Russian oil “stand in the way of closer ties” with the EU, the bloc’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday.

   The article seems to imply that the EU wants closer ties with India that are beyond trade and form a partnership of shared interest, like rules based order and democracy, stating that India taking part in the Russian military excercise Zapad and constantly wanting to keep closer ties with Russia seem to be getting in the way of such ties.

2. EU is not in a particularly good spot to dictate what foreign powers should and should not do. Between Israel antagonization, Trump’s tariffs/isolation, Russia’s war, energy dependence, aging population and dependence on vulnerable trade routes you’d think they’d drop this tough guy act.

3. Is self-awareness absolutely lost on European leaders or do they think so little of their own people that they think they can fool them like this?

   Besides, I don’t think we need to build relations any closer than they are with people like these:

   > “Of course, we have only allowed India to become such a large pharmaceutical producer in the first place, also from the European side, in the expectation that this should then also be complied with. If that is not the case now, we will have to rethink.”

   https://www.politico.eu/newsletter/brussels-playbook/politico-brussels-playbook-commission-to-sue-astrazeneca-vax-to-the-max-merkels-healthy-union/

4. Title doesn’t seem to match the content. The article itself observes progress despite lack of alignment on Russia. 

5. As India rises to take its rightful place on the world stage, it will face the same hypocrisy and finger wagging that China had to also face from the “West” as it too became more assertive

6. I mean, not having closer ties with people is the natural consequence of India’s choice to not align with them: it’s inevitable that the US and EU wouldn’t like India moving towards Russia and China (as much as the inverse would also be natural) and if India *really* cares or doesn’t like it, their only real option is to reverse course and move towards the EU.

   Realistically, India should just kinda acknowledge then ignore this; it’s not as if anything actually damaging or extraordinary has happened. On the other hand, I’d be quite critical if India decided it deserved to have its cake (closer ties with Russia and China) and eat it (completely unchanged and positive relationships with countries they antagonise).

7. I have no idea how Europeans think that after arming and funding pakistan for decades they think india is suddenly going to drop russia because it doesn’t suit them.

8. Well India can also say the same thing about EU’s relation with Pakistan.

   I guess its the perfect opportunity for Europe to move beyond virtue signalling and actually cut ties with Pakistan to show it can put its money where its mouth is. Set an example and force India to follow suite. Till then its just empty rhetoric

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