New Delhi, April 24 -- Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MP Sasmit Patra on Friday opined that India is "well-positioned" to pursue an independent foreign policy aligned with its national interests.

The MP's remark came amid former US Ambassador Kenneth Juster's remarks that India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi is increasingly positioning itself as a "civilisational power" seeking a larger and more assertive role in global affairs.

Talking to ANI, he said, "I think India, as the largest democracy and rapidly rising economic power globally, is well positioned to actually exercise its own foreign policy for its own national interests."

Agreeing with the remarks made by the former US ambassador, Patra stressed the importance of India leveraging i...