India Now Able To Contribute Much More To World: S Jaishankar

India has emerged as a country which is able to contribute much more to the world with a higher level of confidence and harmonise the contradictions of the world, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Tuesday. Addressing the Indian community in Vietnam, Mr Jaishankar also highlighted India's role on the global stage through hosting a successful G20 summit in New Delhi last month and the deep historical and cultural connect that it shares with Vietnam.

"India is today very much a country on the Moon. It is a country whose global impact will be felt more and more... It is really, today a nation with many more capabilities, which is able to contribute much more and which has a much higher level of confidence...," he told the Indian community members.

He said the space India occupies and the reputation built by it is creating the impression in the world that there is a country, which is actually able to harmonise the contradictions of the world, bridge the divides of the world, find common ground, and get people together.

"I must say, whether it was the G20 or a lot of other forums. Today, one big difference we are making is that we are able to get the world to look at the right issues. And the right tissues of the world today are development, climate, terrorism and debt. So the rest of the world today is looking very much towards India to articulate a lot of these positions," he added.

Noting that India and Vietnam are probably the two fastest-growing economies in Asia, he said the USD 15 billion bilateral trade volume can grow and grow very fast. "And what we have to do is to set very ambitious targets and to clear a pathway for those targets to be realised," he said.

"A second set of issues for every country, defence and security is very important. We have long been reliable partners of Vietnam," Mr Jaishankar said, adding that his visit was about how the two sides can broaden their relationship and accelerate cooperation. Noting that things are very difficult in many parts of the world, he said the challenges have actually only strengthened our commitment and our resolve to do more things together.

He underlined the importance of people-to-people connections and hailed the Indian community's role in strengthening the country's global outreach.

"There is no question today that in many ways our relationship is a good fit, there is a lot that we can do, but at the end of the day, when we speak about cooperation, it is done by people, and you are the people," he added.

Mr Jaishankar arrived in Vietnam on Sunday on a four-day official visit.

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