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| Edited By: DNA Web Team |Source: DNA Web Desk |Updated: Jan 25, 2023, 07:09 PM IST
Union Foreign Minister S Jaishankar made stern remarks against a former United States official for his comments against former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. EAM S Jaishankar called the remarks “disrespectful” towards Swaraj, who passed in August 2019.
Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made several comments about former Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj in his new book 'Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love', which hit the stands on Tuesday, sparking controversy in India.
Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said he never saw his counterpart Sushma Swaraj as an "important political player" but got along famously with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, hitting it off with him in their first meeting itself.
As quoted in his book, Mike Pompeo said, “On the Indian side, my original counterpart was not an important player on the Indian foreign policy team. Instead, I worked much more closely with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, a close and trusted confidant of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”
Pompeo, in his new book, described former Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj somewhat disparagingly, calling her a “goofball” and heartland political hack", sparking a sharp retort from current EAM S Jaishankar.
Hitting back at the former US official, S Jaishankar said, “I have seen a passage in Secretary Pompeo's book referring to Smt Sushma Swaraj ji. I always held her in great esteem and had an exceptionally close and warm relationship with her. I deplore the disrespectful colloquialism used for her.”
Contrary to how he described Sushma Swaraj, Mike Pompeo said that he and EAM S Jaishankar “hit it off immediately”. In his book, he referred to the foreign minister as “professional, rational, and a fierce defender of his boss and his country”.
The United States official, while talking about Sushma Swaraj, said in his book, “He (Jaishankar) said that he could see why I had trouble with his predecessor, a goofball and a heartland political hack. "Careful, I'm a heartland political hack!" I replied in jest.”
(With PTI inputs)
