After the murder of an activist, relations between Canada and India have frozen. According to the US, Prime Minister Trudeau relied on information from Canada’s close intelligence partners.
According to the USA, the indication of an alleged connection between the Indian government and the murder of activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar comes from Western intelligence services.
“There was an exchange of intelligence information between the Five Eyes partners,” confirmed the US ambassador to Canada, David Cohen, to the Canadian broadcaster CTV. The Five Eyes countries that regularly share information with each other include the USA, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
Trudeau’s accusation against India
Last Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Indian agents of the targeted murder of Canadian citizen Nijjar in a speech to Parliament. In June of this year, masked men shot at the religious activist in front of a Sikh temple near Vancouver; he died a short time later from his injuries.
Nijjar was not only a representative of the Sikh religious community, but also of the so-called Khalistan movement, which advocates for an independent country on the territory of India. The leadership in New Delhi therefore viewed the native Indian as a terrorist.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government promptly rejected the accusation of involvement in the murder. The case sent relations between the two countries to a low point. Both democracies expelled each other’s diplomats.
In the exclusive CTV interview, Cohen did not confirm whether the USA had passed on the information to Canada. He simply said, “There was a lot of communication between Canada and the U.S. on this.” So far, Washington has refrained from echoing ally Canada’s accusations and putting pressure on India’s government, only expressing concern.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
