Speaking at Chatham House, Jaishankar says the government wants the ‘stolen part of Kashmir’ back from Pakistan
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke on Wednesday about Kashmir and the steps taken by the Indian government, such as removing Article 370, restoring growth and economic activity and holding elections which saw high turnout. He also spoke about the views of BRICS member countries regarding the use of dollar in the international economy.
He delivered the remarks while speaking at the Chatham House.
On being asked about the issues of Kashmir, EAM Jaishankar said, “In Kashmir, we have done a good job solving most of it. I think removing Article 370 was one step. Then, restoring growth, economic activity and social justice in Kashmir was step number two. Holding elections, which were done with a very high turnout, was step number three. I think the part we are waiting for is the return of the stolen part of Kashmir, which is on the illegal Pakistani occupation. When that’s done, I assure you, Kashmir solved.”
Jaishankar also spoke on several other issues. These included relationship with China, internationalisation of Rupee, the role of dollar currency in the international economy and the position of BRICS countries around it.
“I don’t think there’s any policy on our part to replace the dollar. As I said, at the end of the day, the dollar as the reserve currency is the source of international economic stability. And right now, what we want in the world is more economic stability, not less. I would also say in all honesty, I don’t think there’s a unified BRICS position on this. I think BRICS members and now that we have more members have very diverse positions on this matter. So the suggestion or the assumption that somewhere there is a united BRICS position against the dollar I think is not borne out by facts. To me it’s kind of deterministic that there is multi-polarity, multi-polarity has to translate itself into a currency multi-polarity. It doesn’t have to.”
He further added, “We do believe today that working with the United States and strengthening the international financial system, economic system, is actually what should be the priority. So I think that both the strategic assessment as well as our sense of what is required today by the international economy. Will really guide our thinking on this matter.”
Jaishankar is on an official visit to the United Kingdom and Ireland from March 4 to 9 to provide renewed impetus to India’s friendly ties.
A Ministry of External Affairs release said that India and the UK share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which has strengthened across diverse areas, including defence and security, trade and economy, health, education, and people-to-people ties.
‘Peace in border essential for relationship to grow’
Jaishankar said that New Delhi wants a stable relationship with China in which India’s interests are “respected and sensitivities are recognised.”
“The key issue is how to create a stable equilibrium and transition into the next phase of equilibriums. We want a stable relationship where our interests are respected, our sensitivities are recognized, and where it works for both of us. That is really the main challenge in our relationship,” Jaishankar said on the India-China relationship.
He noted that over the past 40 years, the assumption has been that peace and tranquillity in the border areas are essential for the relationship to grow. “If the border is unstable, not peaceful, or not tranquil, it will inevitably affect the growth and direction of our relationship.”
The EAM said this during a conversation on Wednesday at Chatham House, an independent policy institute in London. According to its website, Chatham House has been a source of dialogue and influential ideas for one hundred years.
“There was a certain context for why relations between India and China were disrupted, and the context was what China did along the Line of Actual Control in 2020 and the situation which continued after that. Now, in October 2024, we were able to resolve many of the urgent issues, the pending issues, pertaining to what we call the disengagement of troops who had been deployed up front. So after that, you know, there was a meeting between Prime Minister Modi and President Xi in Kazan, and I myself met Foreign Minister Wang Yi, our national security advisor and our foreign secretary have visited China,” he said.
He shared that the two countries are discussing steps to see how the relationship can go in a more predictable, stable, and positive direction.
“So, the resumption of pilgrimage to Mount Kailash, the direct flights between the two countries, the journalists’ issues- all these are being discussed, but there are some other issues. For example, we had a mechanism for Trans-border rivers. That mechanism had stopped because the relationship was very badly disrupted after 2020. So we looking at this package… it’s hard. You know, obviously, we would like to see it done sooner rather than later. And then we will see what happens”, Jaishankar said.
