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Last week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 13-8 in favor of his nomination. The US Senate will vote Wednesday on the nomination of Eric Garcetti as the country's next ambassador to India. Such a move by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer came amid a renewed campaign against Garcetti by his backers over allegations of sexual assault against one of his employees when he was mayor of Los Angeles.
If confirmed by the Senate, Garcetti will soon travel to India as US ambassador, a position that has remained vacant for more than two years. The confirmation vote on his nomination is scheduled for 2:15 p.m. local Washington time.
That would be preceded by a vote on the motion to close his nomination, indicating that Schumer is confident he has enough votes for Mr. Garcetti to be confirmed as US ambassador to India.
Mr. Garcetti's nomination has been pending before the US Congress since July 2021, when he was appointed to the prestigious diplomatic post by President Joe Biden.
Last week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, during its working meeting, voted 13 to 8 in favor of his appointment.
Kenneth Juster, the last occupant of the United States Ambassadors Residence in New Delhi, resigned in January 2021 following the change of government in the United States.
Ahead of the crucial confirmation vote, Mukesh Aghi, chairman of the US-India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF) hoped that India would finally have an ambassador.
“We hope that this week or next the Senate will confirm that Mayor Garcetti will be the next ambassador to India,” Aghi told PTI in an interview. Responding to a question about the unusual delay in confirmation, Aghi said it was an aberration where local politics impacted international relations.
"But despite the absence of an ambassador, we are seeing a strong dynamic between the Biden administration and Narendra Modi's own government," he said.
"If you look at (US national security adviser) Jake Sullivan talks weekly with (his Indian counterpart) (Ajit) Doval. We have Secretary (of State) Antony Blinken, who talks regularly with the Foreign Secretary, S. Jaishankar. Therefore, they were able to bridge this gap," Aghi noted.
"But I think it's important to have an ambassador because when you look at what's going on in Delhi: the Chinese, the Russians, the Germans, they're all walking down the aisle and the Americans are missing. We hope that this week or next week, the Senate will confirm that Mayor Garcetti will be the next ambassador to India," he added.
