Riley Moore

Verona [Italy], August 12 (ANI): Senior Analyst and Advisor, India-Italy relations, Carlo Lombardi, pointed out that political commentary from a US lawmaker regarding India's Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) often aligns with domestic political interests rather than objective standards.

Speaking to ANI, Lombardi highlighted that statements opposing the FCRA regulations stem from "Christian evangelical lobby" within the US political system.

"On the one hand, you have Congressman Riley Moore, who has a track record of advocating for the protection of Christians abroad. Now, the irony of it is that that's a political statement made by a high-ranking member of what we might call the Christian evangelical lobby in the United States. So it sort of proves the point," Lombardi said.

Elaborating further on the internal contradictions within Washington's institutional positions, Lombardi, highlighted structural shifts in how US foreign aid and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are operated and perceived domestically.

"And then you have other powers and other centers of power. For example, USAID was dismantled, and Secretary of State Rubio actually went on record saying that NGO is an industrial complex built at the taxpayers' expense. The American major NGOs fund other NGOs using public money. And it operates in countries like India without coordinating with host governments and sometimes creating political interference," he stated.

Lombardi's observations come following recent international remarks regarding India's foreign funding rules. On Friday, August 7, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) rejected international criticism of India's foreign funding framework, asserting that statutory regulations remain a strictly internal domain subject to parliamentary sovereignty.