White House says India-US ties strong, will navigate Adani crisis

Asserting that the relationship between India and the US is built on a strong foundation, the White House has expressed confidence that it can navigate the ongoing crisis surrounding bribery charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani.

At her daily news conference, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Thursday that the administration was aware of the charges against Adani. Adani has been charged by US prosecutors for allegedly being part of a scheme to pay USD 265 million (about Rs 2,238 crore) bribe to Indian officials in exchange for favourable terms for solar power contracts.

Adani Group could struggle for funding

• Gautam Adani’s conglomerate could find it harder to get funding following a US arrest warrant for the billionaire founder.
• Some global banks are considering temporarily halting fresh credit to the Adani Group after the US indictment but will be maintaining existing loans, said sources.

Stock loss mounts to $27.9 bn

• Bonds issued by the Adani Group dropped sharply for the second day on Friday and although the shares of six Adani firms clawed back some of Thursday’s losses, the overall market value of all 10 stocks has dropped by $27.9 billion over two sessions.
• Adani Green Energy, which is at the centre of the US allegations of kickbacks, has lost nearly $7 billion of its value.

“Obviously we are aware of these allegations, and I would have to refer you to the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) and the DOJ (Department of Justice) about the specifics of those allegations against the Adani Group,” she said. “What I will say is on the US-India relationship, we believe it stands on an extremely strong foundation anchored in ties between our people and cooperation across a full range of global issues,” Jean-Pierre said.

“What we believe and are confident about is we will continue to navigate this issue as we have with other issues that may have come up. And so the specifics of this, this is something that the SEC and DOJ can be spoken to, but again, we believe that... this relationship between India and the US has been built on a strong foundation,” the Press Secretary added.

The US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York had earlier unsealed criminal charges against Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and other executives linking them to an alleged bribery scheme. The Adani Group strongly refuted bribery allegations made by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission against directors of the Adani Green, terming them baseless.

Adani Group spokesperson, in an official statement, said all legal recourse would be taken. “As stated by the US Department of Justice itself, ‘The charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.’ All possible legal recourse will be sought,” the statement said.