Euractiv sat down with Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar during his visit this week to Brussels – where he met Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the EU’s foreign affairs chief, Kaja Kallas.
The EU is halfway through negotiations on a major free trade agreement with India – a country seeking to diversify its partnerships as Russia and China grow closer. Jaishankar’s pitch: India – a nation of 1.4 billion – offers skilled labour and a more trustworthy economic partnership than China. What follows is an edited transcript.
You are here in Brussels just weeks after a terror attack in Pahalgam – in Indian-administered Kashmir – claimed 26 lives. Yet much of the international media has framed the aftermath as a tit-for-tat between two nuclear-armed neighbours. Why is India’s message not cutting through?
“Let me remind you of something – there was a man named Osama bin Laden. Why did he, of all people, feel safe living for years in a Pakistani military town, right next to their equivalent of West Point?”
“I want the world to understand – this isn’t merely an India–Pakistan issue. It’s about terrorism. And that very same terrorism will eventually come back to haunt you.”
While you’re here raising the Kashmir issue and India’s military response, the EU remains frustrated that India has not joined sanctions against Russia – or done more to support Ukraine.
“We don’t believe that differences can be resolved through war – we don’t believe a solution will come from the battlefield. It’s not for us to prescribe what that solution should be. My point is, we’re not being prescriptive or judgemental – but we are also not uninvolved.”
That is precisely the criticism: that India isn’t being judgemental enough – by refusing to take a side when Russia is clearly the aggressor.
“We have a strong relationship with Ukraine as well – it’s not only about Russia. But every country, naturally, considers its own experience, history and interests.”
“India has the longest-standing grievance – our borders were violated just months after independence, when Pakistan sent in invaders to Kashmir. And the countries that were most supportive of that? Western countries.”
‘If those same countries – who were evasive or reticent then – now say ‘let’s have a great conversation about international principles’, I think I’m justified in asking them to reflect on their own past.”
Where does India see itself in the new geopolitical order?
“Multipolarity is already here. Europe now faces the need to make more decisions in its own interest – using its own capabilities, and based on the relationships it fosters globally.”
“I hear terms like ‘strategic autonomy’ being used in Europe – these were once part of our vocabulary.”
“The EU is clearly a major pole in the global order – and increasingly an autonomous one. That is precisely why I’m here: to deepen our relationship in this multipolar world.”
You seem to view the EU as one pole among many – but the EU wants to be more than that. It wants to set global standards through its Green Deal – including agenda-setting measures like the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
“Let’s not pretend – we’re opposed to parts of it. We have very deep reservations about CBAM and we’ve been quite open about it. The idea that one part of the world will set standards for everybody else is something which we are against.”
Do you trust Donald Trump?
“Meaning what?”
Meaning: is he as good as his word? Is he a partner India is willing to deepen ties with?
“I take the world as I find it. Our aim is to advance every relationship that serves our interests – and the US relationship is of immense importance to us. It’s not about personality X or president Y.”
How do you see India’s relationship with China evolving?
“I just met with several European companies in India that have chosen to set up there specifically to de-risk their supply chains.
Many companies are becoming increasingly careful about where they locate their data – they’d rather place it somewhere secure and trustworthy than simply go for efficiency.
Would you really want that in the hands of actors you don’t feel comfortable with?”