New Delhi: Indian foreign minister S. Jaishankar told Parliament Wednesday that India was strongly against the conflict in Ukraine, but the country could not pass on to the common man the fallout of this hostility.
“What is India advocating in Ukraine? We are, first and foremost, strongly against the conflict. We believe that no solution can be arrived at by shedding blood and at the cost of innocent lives. In this day and age, dialogue and diplomacy are the right answers to any dispute,” Jaishankar said.
He said the “contemporary global order has been built on the UN Charter, on respect for international law and for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states”.
“If India has chosen a side, it is the side of peace and it is for an immediate end to violence,” the foreign minister told the House.
Jaishankar also said the conflict in Ukraine has had “significant consequences for the global economy and for our national economy”. “Like all countries, we too are assessing the implication and deciding what is best for our national interest,” he told Lok Sabha.
He asserted the government needed to ensure that the “common person” in India was not subject to “an additional and unavoidable burden” due to the spike in energy costs.
He said: “Members are aware that in a complex and globalised world, every nation takes into account the reality of interdependence. Therefore, even as they express their position in words and deeds, they also adopt policies that safeguard the wellbeing of their population.”
Fertiliser prices have a direct implication for the livelihood of the majority of our population and indeed for food prices for all of us, the foreign minister said. “Even the security of the nation is at stake as we maintain our defence posture in the manner that current security challenges warrant,” he added.
Jaishankar also replied Wednesday to several Opposition MPs’ broadsides against the government’s position on the conflict. “Many MPs brought up the incident in Bucha and I want to say that we’re deeply disturbed by the reports. We strongly condemn the killings which have taken place there. It’s an extremely serious matter and we support the call for an independent investigation,” he said.
India’s ambassador to the United Nations on Tuesday condemned the killings in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha at the Security Council meet.
T.S. Tirumurti, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, said reports of the killings were “deeply disturbing”.
Without naming Russia, Tirumurti said: “We unequivocally condemn these killings and support the call for an open investigation.”
“The situation in Ukraine has not shown any significant improvement since the Council last discussed the issue. The situation has only deteriorated, as well as its humanitarian consequences,” he added.
India has so far abstained from various UN resolutions condemning Russia, maintaining that they concentrate on diplomacy and dialogue to stop the violence.
Congress MPs were vocal in Parliament Tuesday about the government’s stand on Russia.
MP Manish Tewari said: “Russia has been a trusted friend of India, and it has been a long-standing ally. Russia has come to India’s aid in probably our most difficult times … But then Mr. Speaker, sir, friends also have to be told if they are wrong, that they possibly need to get their act together.”
He added: “This new Iron Curtain has the potential of actually dividing the world. India may not have the option of being able to sit atop this new Iron Curtain.”
Fellow party leader Shashi Tharoor said India’s first UN statement in February was “deplorable.”
“I was shocked, I’ll say very honestly, at our first couple of statements at the United Nations … it was not just the abstention,” Tharoor said.
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