‘Will raise issues of human rights, says Biden’s pick for US envoy to India: What Eric Garcetti’s appointment means for the country

File image of Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti, a close aide of President Joe Biden, will replace Kenneth Juster if he is confirmed as US envoy to India. AP

“I’ll raise them (human rights issues) with humility — it’s a two way street on these — but I intend to engage directly with civil society.

“There are groups that are actively fighting for human rights of people on the ground in India that will get direct engagement from me.”

Eric Garcetti, President Joe Biden’s nominee for US ambassador to India, said these words during his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday, adding that he would double-down on efforts to strengthen India’s capacity to secure its borders, defend its sovereignty and deter aggression — through information sharing and counter-terrorism coordination.

So, who is Eric Garcetti and how will his confirmation as US ambassador benefit India?

Who is Eric Garcetti?

Eric Garcetti, the current Los Angeles mayor, is the grandson of Mexican immigrants on one side of his family and Russian Jewish immigrants on the other.

A Democrat, he was first elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 2001, at age 32, and represented the 13th district, which includes the Hollywood, Echo Park, and Silver Lake sections of the city. In 2013, he became mayor by capturing 54 percent of the vote.

During his confirmation hearing on Tuesday, Garcetti also spoke of his previous travels to India, including his first visit with his parents as a teenager and then again in 1990 as a guest of Ambassador William Clark Jr.

Inspired by his travels to the country, he studied Hindi and Urdu in college as well as Indian and Cultural Religious History.

Before his plunge into politics, Garcetti also served as an Intelligence Officer in the US Navy Reserve Component. During his tenure, Garcetti served under the Commander, US Pacific Fleet and the Defence Intelligence Agency, retiring in 2017 as a Lieutenant.

He also co-founded the ‘Climate Mayor’s network and led more than 400 US mayors to adopt the Paris Climate Agreement. He is the current Chair of C40 Cities a network of 97 of the world’s biggest cities taking bold climate action and has led the organisation’s engagement and expansion in India.

Garcetti has been seen as a rising star in Democratic Party politics and flirted with a presidential run in 2020.

Biden and Garcetti share close ties, with the latter being a co-chair of Biden’s election campaign.

Garcetti is not without controversy. Washington Post reported that a Los Angeles police officer had filed a lawsuit against the city, saying that Garcetti’s former top aide Rick Jacobs harassed him and that Garcetti did not stop the behaviour.

Jacobs has denied the allegations, and Garcetti has said he did not witness any inappropriate behaviour. Moreover, Garcetti’s chief of staff, Ana Guerrero, was suspended in June after mocking labour icon Dolores Huerta.

What Garcetti’s appointment means for India?

If confirmed, Eric Garcetti would be taking over from Kenneth Juster. Garcetti’s proximity to India may be beneficial to the country, but as of now, one remains unsure.

However, the LA mayor places great importance on India and said during his confirmation, “Few nations are more vital to the future of American security and prosperity than India.”

He was also asked about how he would address the India-Russia relationship with the focus on the sale of the S-400 missiles.

“I don’t want to prejudge the Secretary’s decision about sanctions or a waiver. And I do want to tell the Chairman, Ranking Member (and) all the members (of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee). I do fully support the law of the land, the implementation of Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) as law here and part of that is the waiver provision, Garcetti said.

He also said that he would advocate the continued diversification of India’s weapons system.

With inputs from agencies

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