NEW DELHI, February 13. /TASS/. Since the beginning of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, the United States and other Western nations have been blackmailing India and threatening it with secondary sanctions to compel the country to join the anti-Russian campaign, Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov told TASS on Monday.

"Since the very beginning of the special military operation, the US-led West has been exerting unprecedented pressure on India seeking to make it join the anti-Russian campaign by means of blatant blackmail and threats of secondary sanctions. In spite of this, the Indians have been sticking to a balanced position, demonstrating their commitment to partner relations with Russia," he said. "The growing dynamics of bilateral trade and economic cooperation can be seen as India’s response to this pressure."

According to Alipov, Washington makes no secret of its desire to harm Russian-Indian ties. "However, India, as an emerging global power and one of the leaders of the developing world, rejects foreign coercion, values its independence and ‘strategic autonomy.’ It is guided by its national interests, especially amid the food and energy crises," he stressed.

"In its long-term plans, [India] acknowledges Russia’s important position as a guardian of the global balance of power and a country which shares the same views on equal and fair multipolarity on the basis of the United Nations’ central role and international law," the Russian diplomat said.

On February 24, Putin launched a special military operation in Ukraine in response to a request for help from the heads of the Donbass republics. He stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories, but aimed to demilitarize and denazify the country. After that, the West imposed sweeping sanctions against Russia and beefed up arms supplies to the Kiev regime worth tens of billions of dollars.