Ex-foreign minister Khurshid, picked after Anand Sharma gave up post, was part of Op Sindoor delegations & had irked Congress leadership by defending abrogation of Article 370.
The Modi govt first put all its eggs into the US basket when the unipolar moment was clearly over. It subsequently overcorrected, accommodating an aggressive China.
This is a first-of-its-kind initiative for FTAs. The meeting was attended by the Commerce Secretary of India, Sunil Barthwal, and the Deputy Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia, George Mina.
During the visit, the President will hold bilateral talks with President of Mauritius, Prithvirajsing Roopun, and PM Pravind Kumar Jugnauth and will also jointly inaugurate 14 projects assisted by India.
This comes at a time when Pakistan, Turkey & Azerbaijan have been intensifying trilateral cooperation. Armenia has emerged as a key geopolitical partner for New Delhi in recent years.
India has grown stronger globally, but unlike China, it is not a major trading power that has the capacity to punish its trading partners for political reasons.
After dominating India’s crude imports since 2023, Russian supplies slowed amid US sanctions, but a 30-day ‘waiver’ amid West Asia tensions could now push flows back towards 2 mbpd.
Trump has ushered in the age of humiliation. His method is to push around America’s friends rudely and publicly. He knows none of them can afford to fight back.
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