‘Never closed our doors on talking with Pakistan,’ says S Jaishankar
External minister S Jaishankar said that for the countries to talk, the issue of terrorism must be addressed and that it takes a central space.
- Mar 12, 2024,
- Updated Mar 12, 2024 8:42 AM IST
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar stated during a discussion that India never closed its doors on talking with Pakistan. He however sounded a caveat. Jaishankar said that for the countries to talk, the issue of terrorism must be addressed and that it takes a central space.
The minister was speaking during the ‘Express Adda’ hosted by The Indian Express on Monday, when he was asked a question about India-Pakistan ties. Jaishankar was asked if New Delhi would be open to a conversation if Islamabad reached out.
"We have never closed our doors on talking with Pakistan. The question is what to talk about...If some guy has that many terrorist camps...that should be the central part of the conversation," he said. When asked if there could be a conversation with the Pakistani military, Jaishankar brushed it off and said “it doesn’t work like that”.
"As I said, we have never closed our doors to talking to Pakistan…but the terrorism issue should be fair, square at the centre of the conversation. It is the major issue…I am not saying there are no other issues. But I am not going to duck that issue for the sake of talking," the minister said.
During the discussion, Jaishankar was also asked about the India-China relations, to which he said that the escalating tensions in the past 4-5 years have not served either of the countries well. He said the sooner the boundary dispute between the countries is resolved, the better for both India and China.
He was asked if India’s policy towards the US has had any impact on Russia’s policy towards China, Jaishankar said that it is a correlation he does not agree with. He said that Russia and China’s closeness is not of India’s doing and it may or may not be the consequence of the situation that Russia finds itself in vis-a-vis the West.
"Our policy towards Russia has been very fair, very objective," he added.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar stated during a discussion that India never closed its doors on talking with Pakistan. He however sounded a caveat. Jaishankar said that for the countries to talk, the issue of terrorism must be addressed and that it takes a central space.
The minister was speaking during the ‘Express Adda’ hosted by The Indian Express on Monday, when he was asked a question about India-Pakistan ties. Jaishankar was asked if New Delhi would be open to a conversation if Islamabad reached out.
"We have never closed our doors on talking with Pakistan. The question is what to talk about...If some guy has that many terrorist camps...that should be the central part of the conversation," he said. When asked if there could be a conversation with the Pakistani military, Jaishankar brushed it off and said “it doesn’t work like that”.
"As I said, we have never closed our doors to talking to Pakistan…but the terrorism issue should be fair, square at the centre of the conversation. It is the major issue…I am not saying there are no other issues. But I am not going to duck that issue for the sake of talking," the minister said.
During the discussion, Jaishankar was also asked about the India-China relations, to which he said that the escalating tensions in the past 4-5 years have not served either of the countries well. He said the sooner the boundary dispute between the countries is resolved, the better for both India and China.
He was asked if India’s policy towards the US has had any impact on Russia’s policy towards China, Jaishankar said that it is a correlation he does not agree with. He said that Russia and China’s closeness is not of India’s doing and it may or may not be the consequence of the situation that Russia finds itself in vis-a-vis the West.
"Our policy towards Russia has been very fair, very objective," he added.