External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, speaking at the ‘NDTV World Summit 2024: The India Century,’ criticized Canada for its inconsistent diplomatic standards amid ongoing tensions between the two countries.
Jaishankar highlighted the stark contrast in how diplomats from India and Canada are treated in each other’s countries.
“So apparently, the license they give themselves is entirely different from the restrictions they impose on diplomats in Canada,” Jaishankar said. “When we tell them they have people openly threatening Indian leaders and diplomats, they respond with ‘freedom of speech.’ But if an Indian journalist comments on the Canadian High Commissioner leaving South Block looking grumpy, it becomes ‘foreign interference.’ Even calling this double standards would be mild.”
He added that such discrepancies reflect deeper challenges in the evolving global order.
Jaishankar stressed that the shifting international order, moving away from its historically West-centric nature since 1945, is reshaping global dynamics. “In the past 20-25 years, there has been a rebalancing—more non-Western countries like India and China now play larger roles, which naturally leads to new frictions and adjustments,” he said.
He acknowledged that the increasing assertion of countries like India and China has caused disagreements with the West. “When many large countries express their viewpoints and take positions, frictions are inevitable. That’s the reality of today’s diverse world.”
Specifically addressing Canada, Jaishankar criticized its claims of ‘foreign interference’ while turning a blind eye to the activities of its own diplomats.
“Canada wanted our High Commissioner subjected to a police inquiry, leading us to withdraw him and several diplomats. But while they object to Indian diplomats investigating issues concerning their own security, Canadian diplomats freely gather information about our military and police, even profiling individuals for targeted actions,” Jaishankar said.
(Inputs from ANI)