It has been 3 ½ months since Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued his explosive allegation that the Indian government assassinated a dissident in Canada in June. It has been almost six weeks since the U.S. Department of Justice alleged that an Indian government employee sought the assassination of another in the United States. Beyond the criminal indictment of a co-conspirator in the U.S. case and some reported private conversations, the diplomatic response from the Biden administration has been muted. That could be a dark sign of what is to come if global norms against extraterritorial repression of dissidents — and the U.S. role in enforcing respect for human rights — continue to be eroded.
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