Published 20:39 IST, September 2nd 2020
Nikki Haley calls India America's 'real friend', hails Trump for Indo-Pacific strategy
Top Republican leader Nikki Haley said that India and the United States are natural allies because both countries are democratic and value life and human rights
Top Republican leader Nikki Haley said that India and the United States are natural allies because both countries are democratic and value life and human rights. Speaking at the third India-US Leadership Summit organised virtually by the US India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF), Haley said that America has started to know who are its “real friends”.
"Through this Indo-Pacific strategy, going forward America is learning who its real friends are. When you learn that, yes, it's India. But now Indians need to go and show more of who they are," Haley told Mastercard CEO and president Ajay Banga.
The former ambassador to the UN said that it is the time for Indians to be proud and talk about their successes and accomplishments. She added that Americans are not threatened by Indians and realise that Indians make the US better. Talking about the Indo-Pacific strategy, Haley said that Trump administration acknowledging India as natural allies was a “real game-changer”.
“I had often thought that the US seemed to ally a little bit more with Pakistan and a little bit less with India...the Indo-Pacific strategy was one acknowledging something that should have been there all along, which is that the US and India should be natural allies,” she added.
Haley on Indian diaspora
Haley called on Indian diaspora to get more involved in American politics and carry the legacy of their parents' generation forward by participating actively in American political movements. The Republican leader said that she is proud of the work ethic, assimilation, and values that the Indian diaspora brings to all sectors of American life.
Earlier at Republican National Convention, Haley had invoked her Indian identity to make a strong case for US President Donald Trump’s re-election in the polls scheduled in November. The former South Carolina governor talked about his family roots and said that though they faced discrimination and hardships, they never gave in to grievance and hate.
Updated 20:39 IST, September 2nd 2020