New Delhi, Dec. 11 -- US lawmakers on Wednesday expressed concern that recent American policy choices towards India could complicate bilateral relations, warning that a coercive approach risks undermining long-standing strategic cooperation between Washington and New Delhi.

The comments were made during a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs South and Central Asia Subcommittee titled "The US-India Strategic Partnership: Securing a Free and Open Indo-Pacific", where legislators discussed the evolving dynamics of the US-India relationship in the context of global geopolitical competition.

US Representative Sydney Kamlager-Dove presented a photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Russian President Vladimir Putin, taken during Putin'...