Speaking on the Munich Security Conference in Germany, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar reiterated India’s call for a two-state solution to completely resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict. He additionally mentioned that Israel ought to have been conscious of civilian casualties in its (ongoing) response to Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, whereas calling that assault “terrorism”.

“No caveats, no justification, no explanation. It was terrorism,” Mr. Jaishankar mentioned throughout a panel dialogue along with his U.S. counterpart, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and German counterpart, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.

“It is important that Israel should be, should have been, very mindful of civilian casualties,” Mr. Jaishankar mentioned, including that Israel has an obligation to watch worldwide humanitarian regulation. He known as for the return of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas and for the opening of a “sustainable humanitarian corridor” to supply reduction in Gaza, the place, as per the area’s Health Ministry, at the least 28,000 civilians — a lot of them youngsters — have been killed in Israel’s retaliation for Hamas’s October 7 assault. At least 2.2 million individuals have been displaced since mid-December.

Also learn: Why are conflicts spreading in West Asia? | Explained

The battle in West Asia wants a “permanent” and “long-term” repair, Mr. Jaishankar mentioned, reiterating India’s name for a two-state answer.

“And I think today many more countries in the world… feel not just that the two-state solution is necessary, but it is more urgent than it was before,” he mentioned.

Images of Mr. Jaishankar interacting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi throughout the convention surfaced on social media on Saturday. Mr. Wang’s session was simply earlier than Mr. Jaishankar’s panel dialogue and apparently the 2 Ministers had an interplay between the periods.

During his panel dialogue, Mr. Jaishankar defended India’s overseas coverage, which some, particularly within the West, have implied is overly transactional. He was requested by the moderator, Rhoula Khalaf, Editor-in-Chief of the Financial Times, if India’s overseas coverage might be precisely described as based mostly on a “multiple choice mindset”.

Specifically, he was requested about India buying Russian oil within the context of the U.S.-India bilateral relationship, and whether or not the U.S. was comfy with India doing no matter it needed, each time it needed.

“If I’m smart enough to have multiple options, you should be admiring me, you shouldn’t be criticising,” Mr. Jaishankar mentioned to laughter from the viewers and the panel. The Minister mentioned he didn’t suppose having an obvious breadth of alternative was problematic for India’s companions, pointing to his U.S. or German counterparts.

Countries have completely different pulls and pressures and completely different histories, in addition to completely different states of improvement, Mr. Jaishankar mentioned, including that he didn’t need an impression to kind that Indian overseas coverage was “purely and unsentimentally transactional”.

“So I agree very much with what Tony [Antony Blinken] said, which is good partners provide choices. Smart partners take some of those choices,” Mr. Jaishankar mentioned, noting that generally, nevertheless, decisions are handed up on.

India’s buy of oil from Moscow had been underneath the scanner within the months following February 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine. Especially scrutinised was how New Delhi and Washington navigated their shut and rising partnership regardless of the U.S. being the primary driver behind Western financial and commerce sanctions on Russia, and Moscow and New Delhi sharing shut ties.

India and West’s partnership ‘extremely strong’ 

Mr. Jaishankar steered India is a bridge between the West and different BRICS nations (a grouping initially comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) as he emphasised the distinction between being non-West and anti-West, saying India was non-Western however had an “extremely strong” relationship with the West that was getting even higher. This is not the first time the Minister has made this distinction between anti-West and non-West.

Mr. Blinken echoed Mr. Jaishankar’s views, saying the multiplicity and complexity of worldwide challenges required nations to work with one another on a non-exclusive foundation. The U.S. would work on the first occasion with fellow democracies, Mr. Blinken mentioned, including, nevertheless, that it was prepared to work with any nation to resolve explicit issues within the context of a “rules-based order”.

Jaishankar, Blinken talk about West Asia, Red Sea

On Friday, Mr. Jaishankar held bilateral discussions with Mr. Blinken on the sidelines of the convention. The two Ministers mentioned work to “ensure lasting peace and security” in West Asia, as per a readout from the State Department.

They additionally mentioned the disaster within the Red Sea, with Mr. Blinken highlighting India and the U.S.’s “mutually reinforcing“ approaches to maritime safety and the upkeep of stability within the Red Sea, the place Houthi rebels in Yemen have attacked ships following the heightened battle between Hamas and Israel.

India has stationed warships east of the Red Sea and has served as a primary responder in a few of these assaults. On Friday, the State Department introduced that Houthis had fired missiles at a British tanker carrying crude oil to India.