Days after Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan inked the Mecca Pact, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar asked how the deal tackled the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.
When asked during an event whether defence pact was a cause of concern for India, the minister said India takes into account all developments involving nations that are not friendly towards India.
"Well, look, you think about it. You refer to it as a defence pact. There are live military situations which each of the signatories face. What has the MECCA pact done in response to that?" he said at the Economic Times World Leaders Forum.
Replying to him, the host pointed out that not all signatories had necessarily come to each other's aid. To this, Jaishankar said, "I think you just answered your question."
Elaborating further, the minister said, "Everything which happens on the part of any player who is not well disposed towards me, of course, counts in my calculus. Do multiple players—is there a play? When such players, if there are more than one, when they deal with each other, do I take it into account? Of course I take it into account. But would I then proceed to bare my soul to you and everybody else? Of course I will not."
Regarding improving ties with China, Jaishankar said that both New Delhi and Beijing have an interest in maintaining a "stable" bilateral relationship but pointed out that the state of the border would naturally determine the state of the ties.
"I think we went through a particularly bad patch between the summer of 2020 and the autumn of 2024, and that was primarily an outcome of the situation in the border areas," he said.
Jaishankar said the two "very big economies" are markets to each other and part of a supply chain. "The world is competitive. We must build up our strengths. We have to do business with the entire world. That includes China too. But it is important we deal with them confidently and we stand our ground as we have stood in the the border," he said.
