'We have long fended for ourselves...': Jaishankar says without alliance shackles India reads global chaos with clarity

India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, in a pointed reflection on global instability, said India is better prepared to face today’s upheavals due to its historical independence in world affairs. "We have historically tended to fend for ourselves. We've always taken the world as it is... So maybe we face this era of uncertainty and volatility with a greater degree of equanimity," he said during an interview with TV2 Channel, Denmark.

As Europe grapples with what many there see as the collapse of the old world order, Jaishankar urged a more nuanced view. “Falling apart is a very strong word,” he said. While acknowledging the scale of change, he emphasised that India's response differs from Europe’s due to its lack of traditional alliance structures. “Many of the changes pertain to an alliance culture... We don't have that mindset,” he explained, adding that the transformations "impact Europe much more than it impacts India."

Jaishankar addressed Europe's anxiety over the war in Ukraine, underlining that India also sees it as a global concern. However, he defended India’s continued engagement with Russia, noting, “Europe continues to buy energy as well.” He stressed that India’s stance stems from its own experience with sovereignty violations by neighbors like China and Pakistan — events Europe was “very detached” about.

“Diplomacy is about finding common ground,” Jaishankar remarked, reiterating India's early position that a battlefield solution to the Ukraine war was unrealistic. “We always said you’re not going to get a solution... from the battlefield. You’re going to have to talk.”

Responding to questions on the shifting geopolitical calculus, he advocated for a more realistic European approach. “Europe is not just entering a multipolar world. Europe is also entering an era of greater realism,” he said. He urged European nations to rethink assumptions that global trade and negotiations alone could reshape adversaries.

On the topic of former US President Donald Trump’s return, Jaishankar refused to speculate on individual impact. “Trump is a product of his times,” he said, citing the global disenchantment with globalisation's fallout, including job losses and economic stagnation.

Addressing recent conflict with Pakistan, Jaishankar clarified that the ceasefire was brokered directly by Indian and Pakistani militaries, not external actors. Still, he welcomed any genuine global effort toward conflict resolution. “If you have a world leader who advocates settlement... that is to be welcomed.”

He concluded with a call for collective responsibility in a world battered by war and economic disruption. “Different countries need to find ways of... bringing down the temperature, getting people to talk,” he said, framing dialogue as the only durable path to stability.