US President Joe Biden calls India, Japan 'xenophobic'
Grouping together with countries like China and Russia, US President Joe Biden has described Japan and India as 'xenophobic'.
He made the comment just weeks after he called the US-Japan alliance "unbreakable".
India is a key US partner.
"Why? Because we welcome immigrants," he added. "Think about it. Why is China stalling so badly economically? Why is Japan having trouble? Why is Russia? Why is India? Because they're xenophobic. They don't want immigrants," Biden was quoted as saying by BBC Asian-American audience while speaking at a campaign fundraising event on Wednesday (May 1, 2024).
Criticising the comments, Elbridge Colby, a former US deputy assistant secretary of defense in the Trump administration, posted on X: "Japan and India are two of our very stoutest and important allies. We should speak of them with respect, which they command and deserve."
"Applying parochial progressive views to our allies is patronizing and foolish," he said.
The White House, meanwhile, denied that the President made the remarks in a derogatory sense.
US national security spokesman John Kirby was quoted as saying by BBC: "Our allies and partners know well in tangible ways how President Biden values them, their friendship, their co-operation."
Kirby said, "They understand how much he completely and utterly values the idea of alliances and partnerships."
IBNS
Senior Staff Reporter at Northeast Herald, covering news from Tripura and Northeast India.
Related Articles
“Thought she was my wife”: Indian man imprisoned in UK for groping sleeping 12-year-old on British Airways flight
An Indian man has been sentenced to jail in the United Kingdom for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl during a British Airways flight from Mumbai to London, according to media reports.
Countdown to another Iran-Israel war? Tehran readies to 'fire 2,000 missiles in one go'
Jerusalem/IBNS: A renewed Iran-Israel war may be just a matter of time, according to a report published by The New York Times on Sunday.
Christians in Bangladesh 'anxious' after bomb attacks on churches, catholic school
Dhaka/IBNS: Amid growing concerns over violence against minorities in Bangladesh, the country’s Christian community has been left deeply alarmed after three crude bomb attacks targeted two Catholic churches and a Christian school over the past few weeks, according to a report by AFP.
Activists condemn Pakistan's decades-long suppression of the Baloch people during BNM event in Berlin
The Baloch National Movement (BNM) held a demonstration in Berlin, Germany, to mark Baloch Martyrs’ Day, drawing political activists, human rights advocates, and members of the Baloch diaspora from several countries.
Latest News
Slow-moving Hyundai i20 halts at red light — moments later, a loud explosion: What happened near Red Fort at 6:52 pm
CERN Council reviews feasibility study for a next-generation collider
Red Fort blast: Pulwama link emerges as police trace Hyundai i20 owner; one detained in Gurugram
Tamil actor Abhinay dies at 44 after battling liver ailment
