Jaishankar, US Secretary Blinken Hold Talks. Both Sides Tight-Lipped On India-Canada Row
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar discussed global developments during his talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken amid a simmering diplomatic row between India and Canada.
India-Canada Diplomatic Row: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who is on a five-day official trip to Washington DC, met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and held wide-ranging talks including discussions on global developments. During the meeting, he also laid the groundwork for a 2+2 meeting. This meeting comes amid a simmering diplomatic row between India and Canada over the killing of a Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
However, during the meeting, the two sides remained tight-lipped about the direct or indirect implications of the diplomatic row. This is the highest-level interaction between the two countries after the G-20 Summit in New Delhi.
"Great to meet my friend US Secretary of State @SecBlinken at State Department today. A wide ranging discussion, following up on PM @narendramodi’s June visit. Also exchanged notes on global developments. Laid the groundwork of our 2+2 meeting very soon," he posted on X on Friday.
Great to meet my friend US Secretary of State @SecBlinken at State Department today.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 28, 2023
A wide ranging discussion, following up on PM @narendramodi’s June visit. Also exchanged notes on global developments.
Laid the groundwork of our 2+2 meeting very soon. pic.twitter.com/mOw9SIX1dO
India will be hosting the fifth edition of India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue, Jaishankar announced on Thursday. Although he did not reveal the dates of the meeting, it is learnt that the ministerial dialogue would be held in the first half of November. The US delegation would be represented by Blinken along with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. Jaishankar and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh will lead the Indian delegation.
“I actually look forward to seeing you in Delhi for the 2+2,” Jaishankar told Blinken, as the latter welcomed him at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department for the meeting. The last 2+2 ministerial was held in Washington DC on April 11. Started during the previous Trump administration, the first 2+2 ministerial was held in New Delhi on September 6, 2018.
"Focused discussion on India-US collaboration on critical and emerging tech and creating resilient supply chains at discussion convened by @USISPForum," Jaishankar said in another post on social media platform X. "Glad to know that India is the major talking point in corporate boardrooms. Our collaboration offers more possibilities with each passing day," he said.
Focused discussion on India-US collaboration on critical and emerging tech and creating resilient supply chains at discussion convened by @USISPForum.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 28, 2023
Glad to know that 🇮🇳 is the major talking point in corporate boardrooms. Our collaboration offers more possibilities with each… pic.twitter.com/cHjMW2h3vm
Encouraged Indian Counterparts To Cooperate With Canadian Investigation: Matthew Miller
On the India-Canada diplomatic row, US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said that US has encouraged India to cooperate with the Canadian investigation over the issue of Nijjar's killing.
“I don’t want to preview the conversations he (Blinken) will have in that meeting (with Jaishankar) , but as we’ve made clear, we’ve raised this; we have engaged with our Indian counterparts on this and encouraged them to cooperate with the Canadian investigation, and we continue to encourage them to cooperate,” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters, as quoted by PTI. He was responding to questions about the meeting between Jaishankar and Blinken at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department here on Thursday afternoon (which is about mid-night local India time).
Intel Shared By Five Eyes Prompted Canada's Offensive Against India, Says US Ambassador To Canada
Admitting for the first time, a top United States diplomat has confirmed that there was “shared intelligence among Five Eyes partners” that had prompted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s offensive allegation about Indian agents’ involvement in the killing of a Khalistani extremist on Canadian soil, according to a media report on Saturday.
There was “shared intelligence among Five Eyes partners” that informed Trudeau’s public allegation of a “potential” link between the government of India and the murder of a Canadian citizen, CTV News Channel, Canada's 24-hour all-news network, reported quoting the US Ambassador to Canada David Cohen.
‘Five Eyes’ network is an intelligence alliance consisting of the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. It is both surveillance-based and signals intelligence (SIGINT).
India-Canada Diplomatic Row
Trudeau had on September 18 made an explosive allegation of the “potential” involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, in Surrey in British Columbia on June 18. India has rejected Trudeau’s allegations as “absurd” and “motivated.” It also expelled a senior Canadian diplomat in a tit-for-tat move to Ottawa’s expulsion of an Indian official over the case.
In 2020, India designated Nijjar, 45, as a terrorist. Secretary Blinken refused to respond to reporters’ questions about the row.
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