After two Indian missions in America were attacked by Khalistan supporters a senior US official has said that the country takes the safety and security of the diplomatic missions and diplomats that work in them seriously. It was informed that the US is in close touch with Indian partners on several issues including the security of the embassies.
“We take the safety and security of the diplomatic missions that we host in UN and diplomats that work in them quite seriously. We are in close touch with our Indian partners on a number of issues, but including on this we made sure to remain in close touch with them as well as the appropriate local entities, depending on where these various missions and consulates were located,” US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said, as quoted by news agency ANI.
“The US values its important relationship with both our Indian partners and Pakistan as well, and these relationships stand on their own and are not a zero-sum proposition,” he said.
The US values its important relationship with both our Indian partners and Pakistan as well, and these relationships stand on their own and are not a zero-sum proposition: Vedant Patel, Principal Dy spox, US Dept of State on the question of India and Pakistan relations
— ANI (@ANI) March 31, 2023
Earlier, at a news conference on Tuesday, the US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Patel condemned the incidents of violence at Indian diplomatic facilities in the United States, saying violence is never an acceptable form of protest.
“Consistent with our Vienna Convention obligations, the department is committed to taking all appropriate steps, including coordination with federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities, to protect the safety and security of these facilities and the diplomatic individuals who work within them as well,” he said, as quoted by news agency PTI.
“We condemn the recent violent incidents that have taken place during protests at Indian diplomatic facilities in the United States. We support the First Amendment rights of protesters and engagement in free speech activities. However, violence or the threat of violence is never an acceptable form of protest,” he added.
“Attacks against journalists are never acceptable and we condemn any incidents of violence against a member of the media just doing their job and any act of violence or vandalism against a diplomatic facility as well,” he emphasised.
Vedant Patel was responding to a poser on violent protests outside the Indian Embassy in Washington DC and vandalism of the Indian consulate in San Francisco.
Last week, a group of Khalistan supporters held a protest in front of the Indian Embassy in Washington DC and tried to incite violence and even threatened the country’s envoy, but timely intervention by law enforcement agencies prevented them from vandalising the property.
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A few days earlier, pro-Khalistan protesters attacked the Indian consulate in San Francisco. India registered its “strong protest” with the US Charge d’Affaires in New Delhi over the incident and asked the American government to take appropriate measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.
India has said it expects to see action against the perpetrators of vandalism at its missions abroad and hoped the host governments would prosecute those involved in these incidents instead of holding out assurances.
Indian missions in the UK, Australia, and Canada were vandalised recently by pro-Khalistan activists following the police action against radical preacher Amritpal Singh in Punjab who remains at large after evading arrest.
