New Delhi: External Affairs Minister (EAM), Dr. S. Jaishankar, will be on a six-day visit to Germany and France from February 18-23. In Germany, Jaishankar will participate in the Munich Security Conference (MSC) and hold bilateral meetings with Foreign Ministers and senior delegates attending MSC. The MSC would extensively deliberate on the escalating tension between the NATO countries and Russia over Ukraine.
Jaishankar is also slated to participate in a panel discussion on the Indo-Pacific and will lead discussions at an Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM) event, being hosted by CGI Munich and the Observer Research Foundation on the sidelines of MSC.
In France, on February 20, EAM Jaishankar will hold a bilateral meeting with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian. Jaishankar will also attend the EU Ministerial Forum for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific on February 22. The forum is an initiative of the French Presidency of the European Council. Jaishankar is expected to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the EU and other Indo-Pacific countries on the sidelines of the Forum. He will also give an address at the French Institute of International Relations.
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The 27-nation European Union has been in touch with India over the Ukraine crisis. India has been kept in the loop about the grouping's assessment of the situation in Ukraine and the consequences it has planned for Russia if it invades the eastern European country. "We keep India, as a friend and partner, appraised of our views and of our assessment of the situation. What we wish to convey is that all of our efforts are directed towards dialogue but we stand firm on our principles that cannot be negotiated because they define the very essence of Europe's security architecture," the official said.
Russia has positioned around 100,000 troops near its border with Ukraine besides sending warships into the Black Sea for naval exercises. The US has already sent extra troops to Europe to support its allies in the backdrop of fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. The recent development along the Russia-Ukraine border has triggered concerns among NATO countries about a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, Russia has been denying that it plans to invade Ukraine.
