S Jaishankar, US Secretary Of State Discuss Ukraine Conflict, Indo-Pacific

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday and discussed the Ukraine conflict, the strategic Indo-Pacific region and bilateral relations on the sidelines of the ASEAN-India summit in the Cambodian capital.

Mr Jaishankar is accompanying Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, who is leading the Indian delegation to the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit and the 17th East Asia Summit.

“A good meeting with US Secretary of State @SecBlinken. Discussed Ukraine, Indo-Pacific, energy, G20 and bilateral relations,” Mr Jaishankar said in a tweet.

He also met UN chief Antonio Guterres at the end of the ASEAN gala dinner on Saturday.

Mr Jaishankar held also talks with his counterpart from Thailand Don Pramudwinai.

“Always nice to catch up with DPM & FM Don Pramudwinai of Thailand. Discussed our shared regional concerns and the strengthening partnership with ASEAN,” he said.

“Met Canadian colleagues Trade Minister @mary_ng and FM @melaniejoly at the ASEAN gala dinner. All for greater trade and strategic convergence, while countering terrorism and opposing radicalization,” he said in another tweet.

US President Joe Biden also attended the East Asia Summit. He shook hands with Vice President Dhankhar during the summit.

S Jaishankar on Saturday discussed a range of issues with his counterparts from Canada, Indonesia and Singapore.

India has not yet condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and has been maintaining that the crisis must be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue.

Since the Ukraine conflict began in February, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a number of times.

In a phone conversation with Zelenskyy on October 4, Modi said there can be "no military solution" and that India is ready to contribute to any peace efforts.

In his meeting with Putin that took place on the sidelines of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Samarkand in September this year, Modi pushed tehe Russian President to end the conflict in Ukraine, saying "today's era is not of war" even as he called for finding ways to address the global food and energy security crisis.