‘That’s really not me’: Jaishankar on being ‘assertive’ about India’s foreign policies

As external affairs minister S Jaishakar interacted with the Indian community in Cairo on Saturday, he was asked about his assertive stance in upholding India’s foreign policy positions.

Replying to this, he said he doesn’t think he is being assertive, but it’s because of the situation. Jaishankar has been at the forefront to explain India’s decision of buying cheaper oil from Russia amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war while standing against the violence.

“I don’t think I am being assertive. What often happens, to be very honest with you, is you end up in situations where others try to pressurise you or push you, in a sense, leaving you with no choice but to express your view with a certain degree of forcefulness. I still believe that at the end of the day it’s important to explain yourself…at times there is a lack of fairness in which your position is portrayed. I don’t think we should let that pass. We are not doing justice to ourselves if we do that,” the minister said.

“So I know sometimes it ends up in a certain way. That’s really not me. It’s the context you can say. But as a country, it is important for us to be clear in the projection of our interests, to be articulate and explaining why we are taking the position what we are doing,” Jaishankar said.

On NAM

On being asked about his opinion on the Non-Aligned Movement at the present time, Jaishankar said, “It was a group which started in a very different era. It had a context. Today, without any way diminishing it, I would say it’s necessary for independent-minded countries to actually speak their mind, to seek to shape and influence the direction in which the world is going. Because the world today is very polarised.”

“It’s a double polarisation. It’s an east-west polarisation, but also a north-south polarisation. You know the richer, more developed countries are not fully grasping how much the poorer countries are being hurt by what is happening in the world. It’s a very stressful, unhappy world. The countries are struggling and in this, those who have the confidence, experience and capability to speak out, it’s important that they don’t go with the tide, so to speak. Voices of sobriety, sanity and reason are needed at this point of time. Certainly, I see India has such a voice and there are other countries with a similar bent of mind,” Jaishankar said.