Srinagar: India’s foreign policy has been “destroyed” by the BJP government which is not in the best interest of the country, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said.
“When the Ukraine war broke out, India was in a dilemma. So, we will have to wait and see how they move forward. But, as far as foreign policy is concerned, India’s independent foreign policy, which was respected world-over, has been destroyed,” he said.
He was speaking to reporters at a press conference here at the residence of party colleague MY Tarigami.
The CPI(M) leader said India had an independent foreign policy and the country’s voice was heard with respect, but “now it has gone” which is clear when it came to the Afghanistan issue.
“The maximum assistance given to Afghanistan for development by any country in the world was by India. But India was not asked about the change, the withdrawal (of US troops from Afghanistan). Because we are seen as the surrogate or a puppet of the USA. They have lost independence in the foreign policy and it is not in the interests of the country,” he said.
Referring to the war in Ukraine, the CPI(M) leader said his party’s stand was that the war has to stop.
“We appeal to Russia also to get down to talks and resolve it through talks. But, what Russia is saying, we think it is appropriate, is that unfortunately, the real war is between Russia and the USA and NATO. Ukraine has become an unfortunate theatre of war,” he said.
Mr Yechury said that when the Soviet Union disintegrated the then Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev was promised that there will be no east-ward expansion of the NATO, but, Russia now thinks that promise has been violated.
“Today, Ukraine and Georgia are the only countries left in Eastern Europe which are not NATO members. But, even then NATO’s infrastructure is spread over in both the countries. Today, 1.75 lakh NATO combat troops were stationed on the Russian border before the Ukraine war. This was the provocation and there is a need to resolve that,” he said. Web Desk
