‘Trade unionism type diplomacy’: Kanwal Sibal decries three envoys’ opinion piece ahead of Putin visit
“Why are ambassadors accredited to India writing about the impending visit to India of Putin and castigating him if this is unconnected with India’s foreign policy?” asked Sibal.
- Dec 4, 2025,
- Updated Dec 4, 2025 8:49 AM IST
The fact that the envoys of three friendly countries wrote an opinion piece denouncing the visit of another state leader to India is a “trade unionism type diplomacy”, said former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal. He said the representatives of the individual countries did not want to attract the ire of New Delhi and hence put the opinion piece as a “group action”.
Sibal had earlier deemed the opinion piece “vicious” and said it breached diplomatic norms, kickstarting a debate. Thorsten Benner, Co-founder and Director, Global Public Policy Institute, said the article, however, does not address India’s foreign policy.
“Why are ambassadors accredited to India writing about the impending visit to India of Putin and castigating him if this is unconnected with India’s foreign policy?” asked Sibal in response.
In the piece titled 'World Wants The Ukraine War To End, But Russia Doesn’t Seem Serious About Peace', British High Commissioner Lindy Cameron, French ambassador Thierry Mathou and German ambassador Philipp Ackermann jointly blamed Putin for the war in Ukraine, accused Russia of war crimes, and said Moscow was not serious about peace. The piece was published in a leading daily just ahead of Vladimir Putin’s visit to India.
“Or was it their intention to create a controversy around a friendly visit and detract from it by conveying how the Indian government was diplomatically failing to obtain understanding of three major European powers for its policy towards Russia,” asked Sibal, adding that after the talks failed at government level, the ambassadors tried to reach out to the public directly through the media. He said the Indian government would regard it as a provocation and as a violation of diplomatic norms.
While the government has not officially reprimanded the ambassadors, sources told NDTV that the timing of the article is “very unusual” and not an acceptable diplomatic practice.
“This is also trade unionism type diplomacy where individual countries don’t want to attract the displeasure of the host government singly and use group action as a shield,” said Sibal.
Putin is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi on Thursday evening. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host a private dinner for the Russian President. The visit aims to strengthen the bilateral strategic and economic partnership between India and Russia. This comes amid a decline in India's relations with the United States.
During their talks on Friday, Modi and Putin are expected to focus on enhancing defence ties, protecting bilateral trade from external pressures, and exploring cooperation in small modular reactors. Western capitals are likely to closely observe the summit.
The fact that the envoys of three friendly countries wrote an opinion piece denouncing the visit of another state leader to India is a “trade unionism type diplomacy”, said former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal. He said the representatives of the individual countries did not want to attract the ire of New Delhi and hence put the opinion piece as a “group action”.
Sibal had earlier deemed the opinion piece “vicious” and said it breached diplomatic norms, kickstarting a debate. Thorsten Benner, Co-founder and Director, Global Public Policy Institute, said the article, however, does not address India’s foreign policy.
“Why are ambassadors accredited to India writing about the impending visit to India of Putin and castigating him if this is unconnected with India’s foreign policy?” asked Sibal in response.
In the piece titled 'World Wants The Ukraine War To End, But Russia Doesn’t Seem Serious About Peace', British High Commissioner Lindy Cameron, French ambassador Thierry Mathou and German ambassador Philipp Ackermann jointly blamed Putin for the war in Ukraine, accused Russia of war crimes, and said Moscow was not serious about peace. The piece was published in a leading daily just ahead of Vladimir Putin’s visit to India.
“Or was it their intention to create a controversy around a friendly visit and detract from it by conveying how the Indian government was diplomatically failing to obtain understanding of three major European powers for its policy towards Russia,” asked Sibal, adding that after the talks failed at government level, the ambassadors tried to reach out to the public directly through the media. He said the Indian government would regard it as a provocation and as a violation of diplomatic norms.
While the government has not officially reprimanded the ambassadors, sources told NDTV that the timing of the article is “very unusual” and not an acceptable diplomatic practice.
“This is also trade unionism type diplomacy where individual countries don’t want to attract the displeasure of the host government singly and use group action as a shield,” said Sibal.
Putin is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi on Thursday evening. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host a private dinner for the Russian President. The visit aims to strengthen the bilateral strategic and economic partnership between India and Russia. This comes amid a decline in India's relations with the United States.
During their talks on Friday, Modi and Putin are expected to focus on enhancing defence ties, protecting bilateral trade from external pressures, and exploring cooperation in small modular reactors. Western capitals are likely to closely observe the summit.