Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, April 27: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar S Jaishankar said on Wednesday that the country is at a crossroads where it must abandon the notion that it requires approval from others; that others ‘define’ India.
Speaking at ministry of external affairs and Observer Research Foundation’s Raisina Dialogue 2022, he said “We have to be confident about who we are. I think it’s better to engage with the world on the basis of who we are rather than try and please the world by being a pale imitation of what they are. The idea that others define us, that you know somewhere we need to get approval from other quarters, I think, that’s an era we need to put behind.”
The remark comes as India’s position on Russia, which is still attacking Ukraine, is hotly disputed. While condemning the violence and calling for a truce, India maintained its long-standing trading ties with Russia.
The foreign minister expressed his desire for India to become more worldwide in terms of commitment, role, and responsibilities over the next 25 years.
“We should not be looking at the world with a sense of entitlement. We need to earn our place in the world which to a certain extent comes to the issue of how the world benefits from the growth of India. We need to demonstrate that,” he said.
There was a time that in this part of the world we were the only democracy. We should be focusing on our capabilities in every field & must be fixated on outcomes & leveraging from international environment in coming years: EAM S Jaishankar on India's future course in next 25 yrs pic.twitter.com/amvfTumUIk
— ANI (@ANI) April 27, 2022
Talking about Ukraine, he said, “The best way forward is to focus on stopping the fighting, getting the talking and finding ways to moving forward. We think our choices are best placed to advance that.”
Jaishankar emphasised three things that India could have done better in the last 75 years: First, pay attention to social indicators, which he claims are undervalued; second, focus on manufacturing; and third, emphasise the need of hard security.
