EAM Jaishankar to visit Munich, Paris; India, Australia, France FMs trilateral on anvil

India's external affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar will visit Europe later this month for multiple engagements, both in Germany's Munich and French capital Paris. In Munich, he is expected to take part in the Munich Security Conference that will take place from February 18 to 20. 

In 2020 as well, EAM had participated at the MSC. The conference has emerged as one of the most well know forums that deals with international security issues and this time comes amid the Eastern Europe crisis and Russian military buildup at Ukraine's border. This will also be the first high-level visit from Delhi to Germany since the new government led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz took charge. The occasion is expected to provide a first in-person meeting between EAM Jaishankar and Germany's new foreign minister Annalena Baerbock. 

Also, remember Germany is President of G7 countries this year, and for the last 3 years, India has been regularly invited to G7 by the host. In 2019, France had invited India for the summit, 2020 the then US President Donald Trump announced his keenness to invite New Delhi but the summit never happened and last year, the UK invited for the summit at Carbis Bay, Cornwall. PM Modi had taken part at the G7 Cornwall meet virtually due to the Covid crisis.

EAM's next stop will be France where he will participate in the mega meet on Indo Pacific--Paris Forum on February 22, 2022. The meet comes under the 6-month French Presidency of the council of the European Union. French foreign minister Jean Yves Le Drian last month announced that invite has been extended to EAM Jaishankar and said, "It will be the first time during European presidency there will be an event focused on Indo pacific...", adding, "for a long time we have had a very special relationship with India". 

High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell will also be in the French capital for the forum. The foreign ministerial Paris Forum on Indo pacific will see "concretization of principles we share on the respect for law and harmonious development and post covid recovery".

Foreign ministers of European Union members and many Indo-Pacific countries will be present at the forum. Invite has also been extended to Australian FM Marise Payne. Remember, France-Australia ties had suffered a major blow over AUKUS nuclear deal pact between Washington, London, and Canberra. While France termed it a "stab in the back", Australia highlighted worries over increased Chinese aggressiveness in the region. The visit will be an occasion to repair the damage to the ties.

Meanwhile, work is on to hold 2 key trilateral on the sidelines of the forum. One is India, Australia, and France and another is India, Indonesia, and Australia foreign ministers meet. The India, Indonesia, and Australia FMs meet was to happen last year in Delhi but covid had impacted the incoming visits. Work on the India, Australia, and France trilateral has been going fast, given it's relatively new and came about in 2020. 

FMs of all 3 countries had last met on the sidelines of the G7 FMs meet last year but since the AUKUS pact, no engagement has happened amid the Paris-Canberra tiff. A joint statement was released after last year's meet that called for "centrality of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and that UNCLOS provides the legal framework for all activities in the oceans and seas.". UNCLOS has been undermined by China in the south China sea even as the country engages in aggressive maneuvers. 

The visit to Europe comes after EAM's Asia visit. The EAM visited Qatar on Wednesday and is currently in Australia for Quad foreign ministers' meet and engagement with his Australian counterpart. Later he travels to the Philippines, the first such visit by an Indian foreign minister to the country in a decade and comes in the backdrop of the Bhramos deal.