External affairs minister S Jaishankar stressed on the safety and security of Indian diplomats in Canada with the country’s foreign minister Melanie Joly, amid threats from pro-Khalistan elements, on the margins of the ongoing Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Jakarta.
Jaishankar, who is on an official visit to Jakarta from July 13 to 14 for the foreign ministers’ meetings under ASEAN, also met Chinese diplomat Wang Yi and discussed the border issue in the eastern Ladakh sector.
After his second meeting with Joly, Jaishankar tweeted, “Discussed the Indo-Pacific and our economic cooperation. Underlined the importance of ensuring the security of our diplomats. And the need to firmly combat incitement to violence.”
A senior Indian official, privy to the details of the meeting, said the discussions were both candid as the security concerns were “conveyed very strongly” and constructive as New Delhi has seen Ottawa taking its concerns seriously and showing great responsiveness those concerns.
The Indian side has “zero complaints” about how Canadian law enforcement has responded to the threats from pro-Khalistan elements to its senior-most diplomats and missions in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver, the official said requesting anonymity.
In Canada, several incidents involving Khalistani separatists have been reported in the last few months where the activists targeted Indian establishments and diplomats were targeted.
The latest was threats issued by the pro-Khalistani elements, who put up a poster purportedly saying “War Zone” and targeting Indian diplomats outside the Bharat Mata Mandir in Brampton in Greater Toronto Area (GTA) on July 7. This was followed by a protest rally to the Indian Consulate in Toronto by pro-Khalistani groups.
The July 8 “Khalistan Freedom Rally” also saw a faceoff between pro-Khalistan protesters and a group of Indo-Canadian citizens amid heavy police presence.
The rally was organised for Khalistan Tiger Force chief and proscribed terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was murdered in the parking lot of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey in British Columbia on June 18. The banned secessionist group, Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) has accused the top Indian diplomats and the Indian high commission for Nijjar’s killing, with the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) still probing the case.
Canadian authorities appeared to be seized of the seriousness of the situation, with Mélanie Joly describing the posters threatening Indian diplomats as “unacceptable”.
On Saturday, Joly tweeted, “Met with S Jaishankar to deepen Canada-India cooperation in line with our Indo-Pacific strategy, building on our strong people-to-people ties. I again stressed that Canada takes very seriously its obligations under the Vienna Convention on the safety of diplomats.”
Jaishankar’s discussions with Wang Yi, who is also the director of the office of the CPC Central Commission for foreign affairs, also covered EAS/ARF agenda, BRICS and the Indo-Pacific, people familiar with the matter said.
“Just concluded meeting with Director Wang Yi of the Office of the CPC Central Commission for Foreign Affairs. Discussed outstanding issues related to peace & tranquility in border areas. Our conversation also covered EAS/ARF agenda, BRICS and the Indo-Pacific,” tweeted Jaishankar.
India has been locked in a military standoff with China at eastern Ladakh for over three years after Indian and Chinese troops engaged in a stand-off in the Galwan Valley in June 2020.
After Friday’s meeting, Wang Yi said that both countries should find a mutually acceptable solution to the border problem without letting “specific issues” define the overall relationship.
During the meeting, Wang said that he hopes that the Indian side will meet China halfway and find a solution to the border issue that is acceptable to both sides, an official statement issued by the Chinese foreign ministry on Saturday quoted him as saying.
“We should focus our energy and resources on each other’s development, improving people’s livelihood and accelerating revitalisation without letting specific issues define the overall relationship”, the statement quoted Wang as saying.
Jaishankar, in May this year, said that ties between the two countries cannot be normal until peace and tranquillity are maintained on the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Source- Hindustan Times.
