By Frank Jack Daniel and David Brunnstrom NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – India ordered the United States on Wednesday to close down an embassy club for expatriate Americans in New Delhi, escalating a diplomatic row between the two nations that has brought faultlines in their ties out in the open. Furious at the arrest, handcuffing and strip search of its deputy consul in New York last month, India initially reacted by curtailing privileges offered to U.S. diplomats. The officer, Devyani Khobragade, was accused by prosecutors of underpaying her nanny and lying on a visa application, Still festering nearly a month on, the row has started to affect the wider relationship between the world's two largest democracies, with one high-level visit by a senior U.S. official already postponed and a visit scheduled for next week by U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz looking doubtful. Both sides have said the relationship is important and will not be allowed to deteriorate – Washington needs New Delhi on its side as U.S. troops pull out of Afghanistan and it engages with China.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/india-targets-american-expatriate-club-diplomatic-row-escalates-080558026.html

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