Friendships not exclusive in multi-polar world: Jaishankar on global ties

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar discusses the complexities of friendships in a multi-polar world at a book launch.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said on Saturday (November 2, 2024) that friendships are "not exclusive", particularly in a multi-polar world.

In his address at a book launch in New Delhi, the Minister also said India is today positioning itself as a "Vishwamitra" and "we seek to be friends with as many as possible".

“This obviously generates goodwill and positivity towards India. It is reflected in the growing contribution the country makes to global good and in its closer engagement with the international community,” the External Affairs Minister said, adding that in some ways, this is “diplomacy 101”.

He said this at the launch of a book titled “Friends: India’s Closest Strategic Partner”, written by scholar Sreeram Chaulia.

In his address, Mr. Jaishankar underlined that friends are not always black and white, nor will friendship be linear in development.

Friends in the final analysis are "always work in progress", he added.

“In an imperfect, competitive and evolving global order, let us take these approximate judgments of friends and use them as a convenient yardstick for analysis,” he said.