New Delhi: Congress leader and former External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Friday stated that the BRICS Summit should be used by India to present the kind of leadership that the world expects from it.
Speaking to IANS, Khurshid said: “The Summit is happening for the third time under this government. This is because the presidency is transferred from one country to another. What we need to focus on is how to make this significant.”
Stressing that the world expects a lot from India, the Congress leader asked: “Is India able to live up to those expectations? Or does India have its own problems and concerns because of which we are unable to deliver on the world stage, what we can and what we should do?”
Further, he said that the world has a lot of expectations regarding India’s possible contribution in resolving the West Asia conflict.
“Today, since we have received a platform which is being presided over by us, it will be very important to present the expected leadership from our side. Now, how far that is achieved by us, will be discussed after the conclusion of the Summit,” he said.
Regarding Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to India, Khurshid said: “It is important that he is coming because when a distance develops between two countries, then a direct face-to-face meeting on any issue or occasion, or the possibility of establishing some kind of a relationship between them, becomes difficult.”
“The issue which we have highlighted in our country is that the kind of relationship that should have existed between India and China is not there, and we are the ones suffering due to this, as the sufferings from China’s side have never been revealed by the government,” he claimed.
The former External Affairs Minister urged the Indian government to hold talks with China, saying: “Once it concludes, the government should definitely let us know about the discussions that took place.”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday welcomed global leaders arriving in Delhi for the high-profile BRICS Summit, being held in the national capital from September 12-13.
He said the BRICS Summit, which has the attention of global media because of shifting GDP figures and economic dynamics from the West to South Asia, will see world leaders deliberating on accelerating co-operation and co-ordination among member nations and enhancing prosperity for a better world.
(IANS)
