S Jaishankar Starts Three-Nation Trip Today

BIARRITZ: Foreign minister S Jaishankar will travel to Hungary, Russia and Poland from Sunday for high-level bilateral engagements and to prepare for PM Modi’s forthcoming visit to Russia.

Before heading to Russia on August 27, Jaishankar will spend some days in Hungary. Finishing his meetings with the Russian leadership, Jaishankar will travel to Poland, which will be the first high-level visit to the country since 1987. India is slowly ramping up its connections with the Visegrad countries (Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland).

An MEA statement said the minister’s visit to Moscow would see him holding discussions with his counterpart Sergei Lavrov where the two leaders “will take stock of preparations for the forthcoming visit of PM Modi to Vladivostok to participate in the 5th Annual Eastern Economic Forum as the chief guest and the 20th Annual Bilateral Summit between the two countries. External affairs minister and foreign minister Lavrov will discuss regional and international issues of mutual interest.”
The latter will include the Kashmir situation as well as other challenges like the Afghan peace process, Pakistan and China. India would prefer Russia to be less isolated from the west, but the implacable opposition from western countries means Russia will perforce lean more towards China, a development that is already disturbing for India. On Saturday, Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, when asked whether Russia should be re-admitted to the G7 said Russia was still beyond the pale, and they could instead invite Ukraine to G7.
Jaishankar will chair the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission together with Russian deputy PM Yury Borisov. Jaishankar will also speak at Moscow’s premier Valdai Club on India and the Indo-Pacific. Moscow is deeply resistant to the idea of the Indo-Pacific.
Poland, as a UNSC member, has been more than helpful to India in recent days when China took the Kashmir issue to the UNSC. Jaishankar will be there to express India’s gratitude. On the table during the bilateral discussions in Warsaw will be investments and trade, as well as a proposal to increase connectivity, by letting Polish airlines to fly to India.

Source: ToI

Image Courtesy:PSU Watch