Washington; External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar has dismissed the notion that Pakistan impinges on the relations between the US and India, which are based on their complementarity and not on third countries.
He also dismissed the claims of US President Donald Trump that he forged the ceasefire between the two neighbours after Operation Sindoor, saying the record speaks for itself.
“I would really urge you to get over the idea that we need to define ourselves regarding third countries in order to forge ahead” in ties with the US, EAM Jaishankar told a questioner who asked if there was a change in the relations because of Pakistan.
“Big relationships are not forged in terms of third countries and where they fit,” he emphasised.
“The central factor in the relationship between India and the US is India and the US. It is our complementarity. In many ways, it is the benefits that we get from closer relationship that is actually driving it,” EAM Jaishankar said.
Addressing a news conference here on Wednesday, he added that given the size and influence of India, there has to be a commensurate sense of self-confidence and not measure ties in relation to others.
“We are a big country. We are among the top five economies of the world. We are the most populous country in the world. Our influence is growing,” he said.
“We must have that confidence.”
He said that India’s relations with the US progressed on bigger matters that benefit each other and will be what matters in the future.
“It’s about trade. It is about investment. It is about technology. It is about mobility. It is about energy,” the EAM added.
Asked about Trump claiming credit for the ceasefire with Pakistan after Operation Sindoor, EAM Jaishankar said he did not have a role.
“The record of what happened was very clear,” he added.
“The ceasefire was something that was negotiated between the DGMOs” — Directors General of Military Operations Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai of India and Major General Kashif Abdullah of Pakistan – he said, adding: “I’d leave it at that.”
EAM Jaishankar was in Washington to attend the Quad Ministerial meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Foreign Ministers Penny Wong of Australia and Takeshi Iwaya of Japan on Tuesday.
He noted the Ministers condemned the Pahalgam massacre carried out by The Resistance Front, an adjunct of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba.
EAM Jaishankar met individually with Rubio and the two Foreign Ministers, as well as with US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
With Rubio, he said, “we essentially did a stock-taking of the last six months. And, you know, what do we do to go, a look ahead.”
“This included a discussion on trade and investment, on technology, on defence and security, on energy and on mobility,” the EAM added.
Defence and energy are two subjects that are substantive enough to warrant a separate meeting with Hegseth and Wright, he said.
(IANS)
