Washington, Sept. 6 -- Amid ongoing trade tensions between India and the United States, former Ambassador of India to France and Monaco, Jawed Ashraf, on Saturday said that New Delhi does not need to depend on any country to manage its external affairs and must firmly stand by its own interests.

Rejecting the notion that India must align itself with competing global blocs, Ashraf said, "Indians and India need to get out of this mindset that either we have to be in one camp or we have to be in another camp. We are not a small, weak country that needs these crutches in our external relationships. We are a country that can stand in our corner, act in accordance with our values, our principles, and our interests, and have the capacity to con...