The Five Eyes intelligence alliance is a treaty of 5 nations namely Canada, US, UK , Australia and New Zealand. These countires are a part of the treaty for joint cooperation in signals intelligence. It has supported Canada’s allegation that India was involved in the murder of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Other than Canada, the other countries in the alliance described the claims as serious. The US stated that Justin Trudeau’s assertion over India’s role had it extremely concerned.
White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson issued a statement saying, “We are deeply concerned about the allegations referenced by Prime Minister Trudeau earlier today,” and that “We remain in regular contact with our Canadian partners. It is crucial that Canada’s probe continue and the offenders get prosecuted”.
The charges were also described as serious in the UK, where Foreign Secretary James Cleverly stated that India’s involvement in the killing of the Sikh leader is being investigated by Canada.
AFP quotes James Cleverly as saying, “I think it’s incredibly important that we allow the Canadian authorities to conduct their investigation.” James Cleverly is in New York for the UN General Assembly. It goes without saying that we have very close ties with both India and Canada”.
According to Australia’s foreign ministry, it has spoken with India at “senior levels” about its worries on the events.
Australia expresses its profound concern over these claims and takes notice of the continuing inquiries. Australia is of the opinion that every nation should uphold its independence and the law. With regard to advancements, we work closely with our partners. At senior levels, we have expressed our concerns to India, the spokesperson said in a statement.
According to a Western source cited by The Washington Post, the Five Eyes alliance declined to jointly denounce the execution of Hardeep Singh Nijjar but instead “privately raised” the matter prior to the G20 summit. According to the source, Justin Trudeau also brought up the subject with Emmanuel Macron, the president of France.