Less optimistically, India’s foreign minister, S. Jaishankar, said that the five-year outlook was “very grim” due to military tensions in western Asia, Ukraine, and southeastern Asia, economic problems, and threats posed by climate change.
Speaking at an event in New Delhi, Jaishankar acknowledged that he has an optimistic disposition, but he noted that the current state of the world requires a lot of seriousness. He pointed at the ongoing wars, the effects of COVID-19, and other deprivations, such as the rise in pirates in the Red Sea, to conclude that it is, at present, a very tough time.
Jaishankar said this dismal picture ‘makes the case’ for upping India-US cooperation while stressing that bilateral ties transcend treaties. His comments come as the world is focused on the forthcoming US elections and keenly waiting for the return of former President Trump.
The minister also pointed to an unstable economic scenario in many countries regarding trade and forex crises due to the increase in fuel and fertilizer prices caused by the Russia-Ukraine war. He pointed out that such global disruptions have “ rendered whole regions’ unfunctional’.
Jaishankar’s realism acknowledges that the world is facing an interlinked set of problems and that a strategic system is needed to counter these evils.
