Jaishankar cautions China against ‘mind games’, says other nations needn’t be involved in it
Speaking at the Raisina Dialogue, 2024, the foreign minister said India is inching closer to China in becoming a $50 trillion economy by 2075
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday (February 23) issued a word of caution to China, stating it should not play “mind games”, asserting that India’s relationship with its neighbour should not keep it from forgoing its rights to harnessing “other factors in the world” to “get better terms on an equilibrium”.
Answering a question on whether India and China can find a balance in their relationship, Jaishankar who was attending the Raisina Dialogue, 2024, said while China in the past saw intensive economic growth, India is heading in that direction.
“But it’s in the nature of things that at some stage everybody flattens out. So, there will be a period where they will be flattening out and we will be growing,” he said.
“I am not in denial of what numbers today suggest but if one looks at the Goldman Sachs predictions, we both will really be, by about 2075 and up, a $50 trillion economy and plus, and will be too close to each other,” he added.
Taking a dig at China over the border skirmish with India, Jaishankar said while both the countries had arrived at an understanding on the border issue in the late 1980s, it was India’s neighbour which broke the deal, leading to tensions.
“There will be occasions where one or the other will do something to press home a particular advantage and the other will resist,” he said.
“…from late 80s, we had an understanding on the border, precisely because it suited both of us. There was a departure on their side after 30 years in terms of how they behaved on the border and there was a pushback from our side,” he added.
The foreign minister said there was a need to leverage external factors to achieve good bilateral relations.
“The mind games which will be played would be ‘it’s just between the two of us and other 190 odd countries in the world don’t exist in our relationship,” he said.
“I don’t think we should play it. If there are other factors in the world which can be harnessed by me to get better terms on an equilibrium, why should forgo that right?” he added.
