Tag: s jaishankar india

India Voices ‘Very Deep’ Concern Over Ukraine Conflict, Says It’s on the Side of Peace

India has repeatedly called on Russia and Ukraine to return to the path of diplomacy and dialogue and end their ongoing conflict.

Vienna: Voicing “very deep” concern over the ongoing Ukraine conflict, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar on Sunday, January 1, said that India is on the side of peace and since beginning New Delhi’s effort has been to return to dialogue and diplomacy as differences cannot be settled through violence.

Jaishankar, who arrived in Vienna from Cyprus on the second leg of his two-nation tour, made the remarks while addressing the members of the Indian diaspora.

“This (Ukraine) conflict is really a matter of very, very deep concern Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared in September (that) we actually genuinely believe that this is no longer an era of war. You cannot settle differences and issues through violence,” he said.

“So from the very beginning, our effort has been to urge (Russia and Ukraine to) return to dialogue and diplomacy the prime minister himself has spoken on numerous occasions with President (Vladimir) Putin and President (Volodymyr) Zelensky. I myself talked to my colleagues in Russia and Ukraine,” he said.

“We know this is not (an) easily resolvable situation. But it’s important that countries who believe (in)…negotiation, speak up clearly in that regard,” he said, adding that “we’re on the side of peace and a large part of the world thinks like us.”

India has repeatedly called on Russia and Ukraine to return to the path of diplomacy and dialogue and end their ongoing conflict.

Prime Minister Modi has spoken to the presidents of Russia and Ukraine on multiple occasions and urged for immediate cessation of hostilities and return to the path of diplomacy and dialogue for the resolution of the conflict.

In his bilateral meeting with Russian President Putin in Uzbekistan on September 16, Modi said “today’s era is not of war” and nudged him to end the conflict.

India has not yet criticised the Russian attack on Ukraine and has been maintaining that the crisis should be resolved through dialogue.

Jaishankar also told the audience that there are profound changes in India’s national security.

“Much of it is centred around the intense challenges we face on our northern border with China. We continue to have the problem of cross-border terrorism with Pakistan,” he said.

Indian and Chinese troops clashed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh on December 9 and the face-off resulted in “minor injuries to a few personnel from both sides”, according to the Indian Army.

It is the first major clash between the Indian and Chinese armies since the fierce face-off in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.

The ties between the two countries have remained frozen since then with India making it clear that peace and tranquillity at the border is the sine qua non for the overall development of bilateral ties.

The two countries have held 17 rounds of talks so far to resolve the standoff.

Relations between India and Pakistan have often been strained over the Kashmir issue and cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan.

Jaishankar also noted that India has vastly improved its relationship with Bangladesh. “We have settled our land boundary agreement with them. It’s an example of how successful diplomacy has directly contributed to a stronger relationship (between the two neighbours),” he said.

In his speech, Jaishankar also said that India and Austria would sign some agreements on Monday and some of them are of interest to the Indian diaspora – one on migration and mobility for Indians, who want to come here as students/professionals, and another on ‘Working Holiday’ programme, which will enable Indian students in Austria to work for six months.

Earlier in the day, Jaishankar held talks with top Austrian leadership in the first diplomatic engagement in 2023 and conveyed the personal greetings of Prime Minister Modi to Chancellor Karl Nehammer.

This is the first EAM-level visit from India to Austria in the last 27 years, and it takes place against the backdrop of 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2023.

(PTI)

Jaishankar Says Russia Supplied Weapons to India When West Didn’t

The Indian foreign minister also, for the first time, publicly indicated New Delhi’s support for the AUKUS initiative in the face of Chinese opposition that it violates the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

New Delhi: With the Ukraine issue dogging his Australia visit, the Indian external affairs minister on Monday reiterated that a robust defence partnership with Russia had served India’s interests well when the West refused to supply weapons due to Cold War geopolitics.

At the same time, he also gave a public stamp of approval to IAEA’s positive assessment, disputed by China, over the trilateral AUKUS initiative to supply nuclear-powered submarines to Australia.

Jaishankar, currently visiting Canberra, chaired the 13th foreign ministers’ framework dialogue along with his counterpart Penny Wong on Monday.

At a press conference after the talks, Jaishankar was asked whether India is rethinking its relationship with Russia after the Ukraine war, especially over reliance on Russian weapons systems.

“With regard to India and Russia, we have really a longstanding relationship with Russia, a relationship that has certainly served our interest well,” replied Jaishankar.

He then pointed out that India’s dependence on Soviet and Russian weapon systems was mainly due to other doors being shut during the Cold War period, when the US and other Western countries were instead supplying weapons to New Delhi’s arch-rival Pakistan.

“And when you asked about the military equipment issue – we have, as you know a substantial inventory of Soviet and Russian origin weapons, and that inventory actually grew for a variety of reasons – you know, the merits of the weapon systems themselves, but also because for multiple decades, Western countries did not supply weapons to India and in fact saw a military dictatorship next to us as the preferred partner,” he said.

Meanwhile, Australian foreign minister Penny Wong slammed Russia’s “immoral invasion” of Ukraine. She reiterated that “the annexation, so-called sham annexations, or sham referenda and the annexations are illegal, and we remain of the view that Russia’s invasion is illegal”.

“In relation to India, I would indicate again that we welcomed Prime Minister Modi raising his concerns with Mr Putin in September, I think it was, and as Prime Minister Modi has told Mr Putin, this is not the time for war,” she added.

While Western countries have been referring repeatedly to Modi’s “not the time for war” statement to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Moscow has also maintained that it is consistent with the Indian position and in line with its stance.

The Australian foreign minister also stated India’s position on the Ukraine war has not impacted the Quad initiative. “Look, I think the Quad is functioning extremely well. I think that the level of strategic trust and strategic consistency amongst Quad partners is deep and firm. And as I said, you know, I note Prime Minister Modi’s public comments, and we’ve welcomed them,” said Wong. India is the only country among the four Quad countries which has not publicly condemned Russia for invading Ukraine.

Adding that the Quad primarily focuses on the Indo-Pacific, Jaishankar noted, “that’s an area where the convergence of interests between the Quad partners is particularly strong”.

The Indian foreign minister also, for the first time, publicly indicated New Delhi’s support for the AUKUS initiative in the face of Chinese opposition that it violates the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

Last month, India, Brazil and others successfully lobbied against the tabling of a Chinese-sponsored draft resolution at the General Conference of the UN’s atomic energy watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which would have put a roadblock on the planned supply of nuclear submarines to Australia.

The IAEA issued a report that it was “satisfied” with the cooperation from the US, Australia and the UK in monitoring the nuclear material. Slamming the report, China implied that the IAEA director general Rafael Mariano Grossi had become “reduced to a political tool of the three countries”.

Referring to the clash at the IAEA general conference, Jaishankar gave a personal defence of Grossi’s neutrality and described the report as “very objective”. “On the AUKUS, look, the issue did come up for debate at the General Conference, and I think the IAEA director general, who is a very, very seasoned and very well-respected professional in that particular domain, is someone I know myself having worked in that field for many years as well, I think he gave a very objective assessment of what the issue was all about, and I think we respected that and we urged other members to do so as well,” he told reporters.