15 September,2026 02:44 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. File pic
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Tuesday said India must continuously adapt its approach to an evolving global environment as its interests, international exposure and number of partners continue to expand.
Addressing the inaugural session of the 25th anniversary celebrations of the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) in New Delhi, Jaishankar said India is operating in an increasingly complex landscape and needs to constantly reassess its strategies and responses.
He pointed to the conflicts in the Gulf and Ukraine, noting that India maintains relations with all parties involved, making its diplomatic choices particularly challenging.
"There are two major conflicts currently underway, one in the Gulf and the other in Ukraine. In each case, India has good ties with all the parties involved. Forging an approach is therefore not easy. How to balance out the various equities is a legitimate subject of conversation. Or let me give you another example: the global economy is witnessing the weaponisation of everything. We are also seeing greater volatility in tariffs and increased dumping on other markets. How could that be best countered? Another subject for discussion, or let us take competition itself, it is now taking an extreme form with less restraint and higher risks," he said.
The External Affairs Minister said India must examine ways to deter, avoid or mitigate emerging risks instead of approaching global issues through rigid positions.
"What can be done to deter, to avoid, to mitigate? Clearly, much food for thought here. The point I'm making is that an India with greater interests, more exposure, a larger number of partners, and operating in a more complex landscape will have to constantly apply and re-apply itself to this dynamic. Often, the answers are in optimising strategy and responses rather than taking black-and-white positions," he added.
Jaishankar also emphasised that India needs to develop approaches suited to its own circumstances while learning from the experiences of other countries.
"Diplomacy, after all, is very much an exercise in nuance; it is not enough to optimise. India also has to customise. We can draw lessons from the experiences of others, but ultimately the fact is that we are unique. It is therefore all the more important for us to have those debates amongst ourselves, an exercise where ICWA can make a real difference."
Jaishankar highlighted ICWA's contribution to the study and promotion of international affairs since its establishment. He noted that Parliament's designation of the council as an institution of national importance reflected its distinctive role in India's intellectual engagement with the world.
He said the 25th anniversary was an opportunity not only to look back at ICWA's journey but also to consider the role it can play in the future.
Jaishankar said India is engaging with a wider range of countries and regions, while its global interests, responsibilities and international expectations have increased.
"India today engages with a much wider range of countries and regions. Our interests have become increasingly global, our responsibilities have grown, and expectations of India have also risen correspondingly. India is also articulating with greater confidence its perspectives on global challenges, including those that concern the Global South. As India's global role grows, our intellectual engagement with international affairs must keep pace."
He also called for greater space for Indian perspectives in international relations, saying the country's history, experiences and interests should inform how it approaches global affairs.
"While much of the established discourse on international relations has been shaped by concepts and experiences developed elsewhere, a rising India must increasingly bring its own history, experience, interests, concepts, and even terminology to the way it approaches the world. ICWA has an important place in this endeavour. By encouraging informed debate from an Indian perspective, it (ICWA) contributes to a deeper understanding of the choices before us and a more confident articulation of India's approach to the world. It must therefore play an active part in the debates that always accompany the rise of any power," he added.
(With inputs from IANS)
