Supriya Shrinate slams 'diplomacy failure' over Vaishnaw's US trip

Congress' Supriya Shrinate hit out at Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, citing his US reception by hotel staff, not officials, as a 'spectacular failure of our diplomacy.' Vaishnaw was in Washington, DC, for a critical minerals meeting.

Congress leader Supriya Shrinate on Tuesday morning took a dig at Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who was apparently not recieved by a US official during his visit to Washington, DC, and said that the incident speaks about the failure of India's foreign diplomacy policy.

"Nothing wrong with posting a picture of shaking hands with the hotel staff. But the fact that no US official came to receive an Indian Minister speaks about the spectacular failure of our diplomacy and foreign policy. India deserves more respect," Shrinate posted on X.

Nothing wrong with posting a picture of shaking hands with the hotel staff. But the fact that no US official came to receive an Indian Minister speaks about the spectacular failure of our diplomacy and foreign policy India deserves more respect https://t.co/Il6us4nG6U — Supriya Shrinate (@SupriyaShrinate) January 13, 2026

Vaishnaw's visit for Critical Minerals Meeting

The Congress made these comments while reposting a post on X by Ashwini Vasihnaw, in which the Minister is seen shaking hands with an individual at a hotel.

"Arrived in Washington, DC Will participate in the Critical Minerals Ministerial Meeting tomorrow. Secure critical mineral supply chains are vital for our goal of Viksit Bharat," the post read.

Vaishnaw participated in the Critical Minerals Ministerial meeting hosted by United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday.

Discussions on resilient supply chains

Speaking to ANI after the meeting, Vaishnaw said the discussions were particularly important at a time when the manufacturing sector, especially electronics manufacturing, is growing rapidly in India and across the world.

"US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent organised a ministerial meeting focused on supply chain resilience for critical minerals. As we all know, and especially in India, when the manufacturing sector is growing rapidly, especially electronics manufacturing, it's very important for all the countries, including India, to have a resilient supply chain of critical minerals. In this meeting, participants from various countries discuss their experience, the steps that they are taking in making the supply chain resilient, especially technology for refining and processing the mineral ores so that high-quality critical minerals, especially the rare earth, permanent magnets can be secured in the long term in a sustainable manner," the Minister said.

"There were discussions around funding new projects. There were discussions around technology sharing between different countries. There were very important discussions about recycling because that's a good way of harnessing the minerals out of the waste products. There were discussions and agreements around sharing research work among different countries. It was a very positive meeting in which the thought process was to improve the quality and availability of critical minerals," he added.

The Minister further said that strengthening critical mineral supply chains was vital to enhancing the resilience of India's manufacturing capabilities and rapidly growing electronics sector.

US Treasury on diversifying supply chains

Meanwhile, Bessent convened a meeting of Finance Ministers at the United States Treasury to discuss solutions to secure and diversify supply chains for critical minerals, especially rare earth elements.

In a post on X, the Secretary of the Treasury wrote, "At today's Finance Ministerial hosted by the @USTreasury, I was pleased to hear a strong, shared desire to quickly address key vulnerabilities in critical minerals supply chains. I am optimistic that nations will pursue prudent derisking over decoupling and understand well the need for decisive action."

India requires a steady supply of essential minerals to support its technological ambitions, sustain economic growth momentum, and reduce exposure to geopolitical risks. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)