‘India positioning itself as Vishwamitra’: Jaishankar on multipolar world
External affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Saturday said that “friendships are no longer exclusive”, referring to the emerging multipolar world. He added that India is positioning itself as a “Vishwamitra” and seeks friendship with as much countries as possible.
“What is perceived as freedom by one nation can be viewed as interference by another and emphasised that sensibilities regarding sovereignty and territorial integrity remain crucial in evaluating international partnerships,” ANI quoted Jaishankar as saying.
“Some friends may also be more complicated than others. They may not always share the same culture of mutual respect or ethos of diplomatic etiquette. We have, from time to time, seen comments on our domestic issues,” the minister added.
“However, the same courtesies are rarely accorded to the other side. What is freedom for one can apparently become interference from the other. The fact is that sensitivities like sovereignty and territorial integrity will always be a factor in evaluating partners,” Jaishankar said.
‘India not a dogmatic civilisation’: Jaishankar
Asserting that India is not a “dogmatic civilisation”, Jaishankar said that India seeks friendship with as many countries as possible.
“India is today positioning itself as a Vishwamitra. We seek to be friends with as many as possible… If you look deeper, there are cultural and historical factors at work as well, including the fact that we are not a dogmatic civilisation.”
“There is a capability aspect as well, which accounts for the self-confidence with which we approach the world,” he said.
Jaishankar said that there were cultural and historical factors to develop such friendships, including the fact that India was not a “dogmatic civilisation.”
Stating that India’s capability contributes to its self-confidence in engaging with the world, he highlighted three transformations under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
‘QUAD nations navigated historical hesitations’: Jaishankar
Citing the “benefits” India’s QUAD alliance partners i.e United States, Japan and Australia gained from the partnership, Jaishankar said that these countries “navigated historical hesitations”.
“The US, Japan, and Australia have benefitted from the QUAD. They are examples of overcoming the hesitations of history. UAE and Israel are from a region that is being engaged comprehensively at last. Russia and France are statements of multipolarity, ours as much as theirs,” he said.
“All these changes in the last decade were much of a credit to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s personal interest and leadership,” he said.
“If all these types have changed so much in the last decade, I’m sure you would agree with me that much of the credit should go to PM Modi for his personal interest and leadership.”
“Because, remember, at least three of them had not even seen a high-level visit for three decades. In other cases, there was either pressure on us to limit our interaction or, in a few cases, longstanding ideological doubts to overcome,” he added.