WASHINGTON – America’s top diplomat once again urges India and Canada to work together to bring Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s killers to justice and prevent deepening a serious geopolitical divide between the two important allies.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed that he conveyed this message on Thursday during his meeting with Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, the Indian foreign minister.

Relations between Canada and India have plummeted since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau raised “credible allegations” of links between the Indian government and the shooting death of Nijjar, a prominent Sikh separatist and Canadian citizen.

“We are very concerned about the allegations made by Canada and by Prime Minister Trudeau,” Blinken said during a press conference on Friday.

“Those responsible must be held accountable and we hope our friends in Canada and India will work together to resolve this issue,” he said.

Blinken said the United States had been in close contact with both countries about the allegations since Trudeau made them public earlier this month in the House of Commons.

“At the same time, we engaged with the Indian government and urged it to work with Canada on an investigation, and I had the opportunity to do so again during my meeting yesterday with Foreign Minister Jaishankar,” the Secretary of State continued. .

A State Department report on the meeting did not mention the controversy, but international diplomacy experts say it is not surprising.

The allegations have put the United States in a delicate situation, with the Biden administration courting India as it works to develop a geopolitical bulwark against China’s growing influence.

“Rules are rules,” says Trudeau

Trudeau, who specifically asked Blinken to reiterate Canada’s concerns with Jaishankar, visited a community center on Friday in Brampton, Ont., a Toronto suburb that is home to Canada’s largest Sikh population.

“We’re going through a very, very difficult period right now,” Trudeau said. “This is a time when we must stand together, we must be there for each other.”

The prime minister acknowledged the challenge of facing such serious accusations with a country that is widely seen around the world as a vital economic and geopolitical ally for the West.

“Every Canadian, regardless of their background, should feel safe in this country,” Trudeau said.

«C’est quelque chose que même si nous cherchons à travailler et à développer nos relations commerciales dans le monde entier, y compris avec l’Inde, nous devons être sans équivoque sur le fait que les règles sont les règles», at -el says.

In such circumstances, diplomacy can be a delicate and nuanced enterprise. But the United States has already taken steps to ensure that Trudeau has at least some support within the so-called “Five Eyes” security alliance.

David Cohen, the US ambassador to Canada, confirmed that Canada’s allegations were supported in part by intelligence from the alliance, which includes the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

“I think Americans feel that they supported the head of government, the prime minister, with the ambassador’s comments,” said Gary Doer, who spent more than six years as Canada’s envoy in Washington.

“I think if they hadn’t gone public through their ambassador, we might have looked for bias, but they still found someone to support the prime minister,” he said in follow-up.

A strong economic and diplomatic relationship with India is as important to Canada as it is to the United States, Doer added.