External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said the real obstacle to India’s rise is not the barriers of the world anymore but the dogmas of Delhi. Delivering the fourth Ramnath Goenka Memorial Lecture, on the topic “Beyond the Delhi Dogma: Indian Foreign Policy in a Changing World” in New Delhi yesterday, the Minister said that a nation that has the aspiration to become a leading power cannot be dogmatic in approaching a visibly changing global order.
He said the very structure of international order is undergoing a profound transformation and cited the example of American nationalism, the rise of China, the Brexit saga and rebalancing of the global economy. On India walking away from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the Eternal Affairs Minister said having no agreement is better than having a bad agreement.
Highlighting India’s new approach in dealing with terrorism, the External Affairs Minister compared lack of response to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks to the way the country responded to the Uri and Pulwama strikes. He also said the Simla agreement of 1972 resulted in Pakistan continuing problems in Jammu and Kashmir.