'Life is about respecting...': EAM S Jaishankar slams Western criticism of India's purchase of Russian oil

Refuting the Western criticism of India's purchase of Russian oil despite its ongoing conflict in Ukraine, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said "this part of the world" has to understand that every part of the world has its own interests.

Criticising Europe's "selective approach," Jaishankar asked why Europe has itself not cut its businesses with Russia if it's a matter of principles. In an interview with the Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera, in Italy, Jaishankar highlighted Europe's "unreasonable expectations" from other parts of the world, while its own disengagement with Russia has been very "selective."

"This part of the world has to understand that every part of the world has its interests. The priorities of Europe will naturally differ from the ones of countries in Asia, Africa, or Latin America. If everything is a matter of such a deep principle, then Europe itself should have cut off all its business with Russia, but it doesn't do that. It's been very selective and paced its disengagement very, very carefully. So to say this region (Europe) will worry about its people, and others should not worry about what the impact will be on them, is not reasonable," Jaishankar said.

Jaishankar further asked why should India "pay higher prices just to make you (Europe) happy."

"And please understand one thing. Europe was importing energy from Russia. Europe then started diverting to other producers and that put pressure on the market. So what are we supposed to do? Pay higher prices just to make you happy? Life is about respecting other people's interests, not about having everything your way," he further said.

Being asked about India's position on resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Jaishankar further reiterated that New Delhi advocates ending the war through diplomacy and dialogue. "We think that there should be diplomacy to find a way of ending the conflict. And that's what we are trying to do," he said.

Jaishankar highlighted India's efforts to resolve the conflict and pointed out that a solution doesn't lie on the battlefield. He also emphasised that unless Moscow and Kyiv don't sit on the negotiation table, no one can get to know what the two sides want.

"So you have to talk to Moscow, and you have to talk to Kyiv. And that's what we are trying to do. Look, it's now nearly three years. You're not going to get a solution from the battlefield, right? We have to negotiate. At some stage, people will come to the table. The sooner they do it, the better, because the rest of the world is affected. It's not just that Europe is taking the brunt of this conflict. Everybody else's life is also impacted by what is happening. So do understand there is a big feeling across very large parts of the world. More effort needs to be done to actually get the participants back to the negotiation," he said.

"We will know what Russia wants or Ukraine wants only when they get down to the negotiation. We have today two major conflicts taking place simultaneously. This is putting the entire international system under great stress. And we cannot be just spectators and say, well, that's the way it is. It may or may not work. We will not know until we try. But we do believe that on both these conflicts, in Ukraine and in the Middle East, countries need to take initiatives, make efforts, however difficult it looks, to try and find some common ground, something better than what we have today," the Foreign Minister added.

Being asked about the International Criminal Court's arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Jaishankar pointed out that India is not a signatory to the ICC. In a sharp dig, he said, When you're not members of a body, that already tells you what your views are about that body.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from ANI)

READ | Tamil Nadu braces for cyclone Fengal: Heavy rain likely, schools, colleges shut in Chennai, Puducherry; check IMD update