Indian Advice : Europeans better wake-up
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday advised the European countries on the new world order, the Ukraine conflict, and the new challenges and apprised that they better wake-up, listen to Indian advice and understand the shaking up of international order.
India’s Foreign Minister said, ” Europeans needed a wake-up call to understand that the difficult aspects of life are not always taken care of by others, adding, no region will be stable if dominated by a single power.”
Speaking about the conflict in Ukraine, he said that today’s era is not of war he called for both countries to resolve their differences at the negotiation table through dialogue and diplomacy.
He said that during the 2008 financial crisis, Europe took a defensive stance toward the world.
“Above all, Europe wanted to develop within its own space and to keep international problems as far away as possible. Europe focused on trade, emphasized multilateralism and used its economic influence to shape the world on its own terms on issues such as climate change and human rights. Europe tended not to want to be involved in tough security issues,” said Jaishankar.
“We are already living in dangerous times. This transition to the new world order will take a long time. Because change is big. The Americans were the quickest to realize that they had to reposition themselves and seek cooperation with countries like us,” said the EAM.
There has been tectonic plate shift in the world power structure, in the US despite all the differences, former US Presidents, Barack Obama and Donald Trump both agreed that the US can no longer play the same role in the world stage as it once did and must withdraw. This must be realized by all and acted upon accordingly.
European though realizing even before the start of Ukraine conflict that the world order has been changing, acted in an obstinate manner and still goaded Ukraine to take on Russia. They also kept insisting regarding Ukraine becoming a NATO member, forgetting the CUBAN CRISIS created by Kennedy.
Presently the world order is more or less still Western and it needs to be replaced by a world of “multi-alignment” where countries will choose their own particular policies and preferences and interests.
No wonder a rising and confident New Delhi rejected American and European pressure at the United Nations to condemn the Russian action on Ukraine. As Europeans and USA started buying more oil from Middle East, India began importing Russian oil at much cheaper rates. Moscow thus became its largest oil supplier. India outright dismissed the perceived hypocrisy of the West since the Russia-Ukraine conflict began on February 24.
This war has provoked “moral outrage” in the West over Russian “ atrocities”, though they themselves are blind to the fact about the Western sanctions against Russia has caused to Africa and rest of the World. It has driven up energy, food and fertilizer costs, causing acute economic difficulties in poorer countries.
“I would still like to see a more rules-based world. But when people start pressing you in the name of a rules-based order to give up, to compromise on what are very deep interests, at that stage I’m afraid it’s important to contest that and, if necessary, to call it out,” said Jaishankar.
Taking a jab at Europe on the import of Russian oil, he said, “Europe has imported six times the fossil fuel energy from Russia that India has done and that if a USD 60,000-per-capita society feels it needs to look after itself, and I accept that as legitimate, they should not expect a USD 2,000-per-capita society to take a hit.”
Jaishankar further reiterated that India will not cut ties with Russia, adding that Moscow supported New Delhi with weapons over decades of non-alignment, while the United States cosseted India’s archenemy, Pakistan.
How can India forget that mad Nixon’s action to directly threaten India with a nuclear armed flotilla led by USS Enterprise, even the UK acting like a stooge had sent its ship into the Arabian Sea to intimidate India.
