US secretary of state Antony Blinken said India and Russia became partners of choice out of necessity when the United States was not in a position to be New Delhi’s partner. But now that the US is working towards strengthening ties with India, there is a growing strategic convergence between the United States and India, Blinken said at a Congressional hearing by the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations. His opinion on the India-US relationship was sought by Senator William Hagerty during the hearing. The India-US relationship is one of the most debated issues in the aftermath of New Delhi’s decision to not sever trade ties with Russia even after it attacked Ukraine.