Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar on Wednesday said the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation had been rendered “ineffective due to the insecurity of one member”, in an apparent reference to Pakistan. He was addressing the gathering at the second edition of the Raisina Dialogue, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address at the same conference called for Pakistan to walk away from terror if it wanted to continue holding talks with India.
Speaking about India’s future relations with the United States, Jaishankar said Delhi was expecting a strong convergence of interests and concerns under President-elect Donald Trump’s regime. The western power seems inclined to change the way it engages with the rest of the world, the foreign secretary said, predicting that US-Russia ties would undergo a major transformation in the coming days. He said that any improvement in the relations between the two countries would be in India’s best interest.
Jaishankar said the US, Russia and the UK were becoming less internationalist in their outlook, while India was an exception to the growing nationalism across the world. On China, he said bilateral ties that focused on business had been marred by “differences on certain political issues”. It is important that the two nations see their rise as “mutually supportive”, he said.
He also spoke about the importance of implementing the Sustainable Development Goals and highlighted the United Nations Security Council’s resistance to change. Citing aid granted to Bhutan and Afghanistan and participation in relief operations, Jaishankar said India “does its part in contributing to global development”. He called India a “natural exponent of multilateralism”.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!