Eric Garcetti to be named US ambassador to India

Former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti would become the US ambassador to India after getting the vote of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. His nomination will now be sent to the full US Senate for a vote, reported Fox News. This comes after the panel approved the nomination by a vote of 13-8 on Wednesday. Republican Senators Todd Young and Bill Hagerty voted in favour of Garcetti. 

According to the US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price, "We did see the action on the part of the Senate today. We heartily applaud that. The US needs a confirmed Ambassador in India. Our team on the ground, incl Charge d' Affaires, who has served in the place of an ambassador, have done extraordinary work." Further, he added that this would be in the interests of both of our people to have a confirmed Ambassador in place. He hoped that the mayor and soon-to-be Ambassador Eric Garcetti would be able to take up that post before long. 

Garcetti to be US ambassador to India 

Garcetti was first nominated by US President Joe Biden for the position of ambassador to India in July 2021, and the Foreign Relations Committee initially signed off on him in January 2022. However, his nomination was kept on hold for a year due to the allegation about the sexual misconduct that one of his former top advisers committed and he allegedly did not take any action to stop it, reported The Hill.

Further, Senator Chuck Grassley also released a report in May that proved that Garcetti was aware of the allegations that his former chief of staff, Rick Jacobs, had sexually harassed a Los Angeles police officer. 

Now Eric Garcetti has now a clear path ahead and would be appointed as ambassador to India. While talking about Garcetti's nomination as the ambassador to India, Price said that there is no other country around the world that would put itself in a position to have a vacancy open in a strategically important and valuable place like India for two-plus years.

"Now, we certainly hope that the action that the Senate took today foretells additional action. The US needs a confirmed Ambassador in India... There is no other country around the world that would put itself in a position to have a vacancy open in a strategically important & valuable place like India for two-plus years," said Price.