Doha [Qatar], December 7 : External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday gave a witty reply, when posed with a question on whether the United States was trying to attract India into its sphere.
During his panel discussion at the Doha Forum in Qatar, the Foreign Minister was asked this question, to which he responded, saying, "We've been trying to attract them into the Indian sphere."
Jaishankar was adressing the 22nd edition of the Doha Forum panel on 'Conflict Resolution in a New Era' where Qatar Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani and Norway Foreign Minister, Espen Barth Eide were also present.
"Pleased to participate @DohaForumpanel today on the topic "Conflict Resolution in a New Era" in Doha today along with PM & FM@MBA_Al Thani_of Qatar and FM @EspenBarthEide of Norway. As the conflicts around us increase, the need of the hour is more diplomacy, not less," he stated in a post on X.
Further, while speaking on unrest in Syria, Jaishankar said that the conflict posed a danger to the Indian diaspora there and has also caused a surge in shipping costs.
"We are some distance away. We still have about half-a-million Indians living in Mediterranean countries. We have trade of about USD 80 billion with Mediterranean. Looking at the gulf, we have 10 million Indians here and about USD 180 billion of trade," he said.
"What's happening in Syria, region, Gaza, Lebanon, the combination of all of this, there is a larger regional instability which is actually growing month on month. It is impacting country in Asia. We are feeling it in shipping costs, trade destructions, in radicalization. So, today, instability anywhere actually is a source of concern. There is no region that is faraway and doesn't matter to us. Our interests are there," the EAM added.
Speaking on the Israel-Palestine conflict, he said that the core issue is achieving a 'modus vivendi' between the two sides and urged the diplomats across the world to come forward for it.
"The core issue undoubtedly is Palestine and Israel's relationship, how do they reach a modus vivendi. There is a larger issue side-by-side, which is the widening of the conflict, which is also a major concern. Today...I don't want to say we normalized it, but two years ago, the prospect of Israel and Iran actually firing at each other would have been appalling something which we couldn't have even contemplated. Yet, it happened," Jaishankar further said.
"If you look at what is happening in Red Sea and its impact in Asia, it's huge. So, I think there are different challenges, layers of them... Diplomats of world have to tell themselves- it's a messy world, it's terrible, there are conflicts, but therefore there's all the more reason for diplomats of the world to step forward," he added.
EAM Jaishankar is on a official visit to Qatar and Bahrain from December 6-9.
In Bahrain, he will co-chair the 4th India-Bahrain High Joint Commission (HJC) with Foreign Minister of Bahrain; Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani. EAM will also participate in the 20th edition of IISS Manama Dialogue in Bahrain on December 8.
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