Bahrain
On Wednesday, senior officials from Bahrain and India held virtual talks to review bilateral cooperation in several areas, including “oil and gas, trade and investment, defence and security, food security, healthcare, renewable energy, space, IT, human resource, education and culture.” Sanjay Bhattacharyya (Secretary (Consular, Passport and Visa Division), Ministry of External Affairs of India) and Dr. Shaikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa (Under Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Bahrain) co-chaired the meeting, which came in preparation for the upcoming India-Bahrain High Joint Commission (HJC) dialogue. The third India-Bahrain HJC will be conducted on April 7 and will see the participation of Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his Bahraini counterpart Dr Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani.
Australia
The sixth round of the India-Australia Dialogue on Disarmament, Non-Proliferation and Export Control was conducted virtually on Tuesday. According to a statement by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, the two allies exchanged views on several issues of mutual interest, including “nuclear, chemical, biological disarmament and non-proliferation, conventional weapons, outer space security and strategic export control.” In this regard, they agreed to bolster “mutual understanding and appreciation of national perspectives and global developments on non-proliferation and disarmament issues”, which they believed would enhance the India-Australian Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
Group of Seven (G7) Sherpas
On the same day, India attended the virtual gathering of the Group of Seven (G7) Sherpas. Apart from India, Australia, South Korea, and South Africa were also invited as guest countries for the meeting. New Delhi was represented by Suresh Prabhu, who serves as the Indian Sherpa to the G20 and G7. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that the leaders discussed the upcoming COP26, which will be conducted under the United Kingdom’s (UK) presidency, along with the issue of climate change and global health cooperation.
Heart of Asia – Istanbul Process
On Monday, India participated in the ninth ministerial conference of the Heart of Asia – Istanbul Process (HoA-IP), which took place in Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe. The HoA-IP attempts to end the conflict in Afghanistan by seeking regional consensus regarding the country’s stalled peace process. The summit, which was not held last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, came just a few days after the Taliban threatened to resume hostilities against foreign troops who fail to withdraw by the May 1 deadline, which was set by the United States (US) and the group in Doha last year.
Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar attended the conference on behalf of New Delhi and tweeted that he had spoken with Afghan President Ghani before the meeting and shared India’s “perspectives on the peace process.” During the discussion, he called for “double peace” in Afghanistan and in the region, further reiterating the country’s support for the Intra-Afghan Negotiations. Jaishankar also met with his counterparts from Iran and Turkey on the sidelines of the meet.
United States
On Monday, Indian Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan held a virtual conference with his American counterpart Jennifer Granholm, wherein the two discussed their mutual commitment towards revamping the India-United States (US) Strategic Energy Partnership (SEP). This was reflective of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and American President Joe Biden’s vision to promote clean energy, which featured in the telephonic conversation between the two premiers on February 8, 2021.
During the virtual meet, Pradhan and Granholm spoke of the need to further cooperate in sectors including “biofuels, carbon capture, utilisation and storage, hydrogen production and carbon sequestration, through technology exchange, joint research and development (R&D) through Partnership to Advance Clean Energy Research (PACE-R)”. Further, they expressed their determination to expeditiously reconvene for the third meeting of the updated SEP. According to a statement by the Indian Petroleum Ministry, “They decided to intensify the efforts to take advantage of the complementarities of both the countries -advanced US technologies and rapidly growing India’s energy market, for a win-win situation through a cleaner energy route with low carbon pathways.”
Côte d’Ivoire
Also on Monday, the first Foreign Office Consultations between India and Côte d’Ivoire were conducted in Abidjan. The Indian side was represented by Mr. Rahul Chhabra, Secretary (ER) in the Ministry of External Affairs. Meanwhile, Daouda Diabate, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Côte d’Ivoire, co-chaired the meeting.
According to a press release by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, both sides spoke of their expanding bilateral relations and further reiterated their commitment to enhance the relationship “based on the shared visions, principles, and value of democracy”. They also conducted an extensive review of their bilateral cooperation in several sectors, including “trade & investment, automobiles, agriculture, energy, industry, security, healthcare & pharmaceutical as well as development cooperation”.
Nevertheless, they exchanged views on the need to bolster their trade and economic cooperation and consequently expand bilateral trade and investment. In this regard, they agreed to expeditiously finalise a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Bilateral Investment Agreement. The officials also discussed the need to expand the bilateral development partnership through lines of credit and buyer’s credit arrangements from the Indian side, which would “enhance [the] capacity of Ivoirian entities in these priority areas.”
Bangladesh
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi conducted a two-day visit to Bangladesh from March 26-27, 2021. This was the Indian premier’s first foreign tour since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a statement by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the visit “symbolised the partnership of half-a-century between India and Bangladesh that has strengthened, matured and evolved as a model for bilateral relations for the entire region.”
On his first day in the capital city of Dhaka, Modi attended the country’s National Day Celebration—marking Bangladesh’s 50th Independence Day—as the Guest of Honour. The Prime Minister also visited the National Martyrs’ Memorial at Savar, where he laid a wreath in memory of those who fought for the nation’s freedom. Further, the leader held talks with Bangladeshi foreign minister Dr. AK Abdul Momen, wherein the officials reportedly discussed ways to strengthen their countries’ strategic partnership.
On his second and final day, Modi, along with his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina, visited Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s mausoleum in Tungipara to pay respects to the leader. He also visited two historic Hindu temples at Satkhira and Orakandi. Both locations are important places of worship for the Hindu Matua community—a large number of whom also live in West Bengal—whose vote is expected to be crucial in determining the winners in about 30-50 assembly constituencies in the state assembly elections (which also began on Saturday).
Later in the day, the two prime ministers held one-on-one talks, which was then followed by a delegation-level meet between the two sides. The leaders discussed the state of bilateral relations and reviewed the progress made in areas such as health, trade, technology, connectivity, water-sharing, energy, and developmental cooperation. Building on their ongoing coordination in tackling the coronavirus crisis, Modi also donated 1.2 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to Bangladesh. Dhaka has already inked an agreement with the Serum Institute of India for 30 million doses of the vaccine, of which 5 million have already been delivered. India assured Bangladesh on Saturday that would do its best to facilitate the prompt delivery of the remaining tranches of the shots, “in accordance with its domestic exigencies and international commitments.”
The parties also signed five MoUs, relating to: disaster management and mitigation; establishment of a framework of cooperation in the area of trade remedial measures; supply of ICT equipment, books and training for the Bangladesh-Bharat Digital Service and Employment Training Centre; establishment of sports facilities at Rajsahi College; and cooperation between the Bangladesh National Cadet Corps and India’s National Cadet Corps.
Indian Diplomacy: Weekly Round-Up (27 March - 2 April, 2021)
This week, Indian authorities convened several meetings with officials from Bangladesh, United States, Australia, amongst others.
April 2, 2021
SOURCE: PTI