Transcript of Press Conference by External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar in Washington D.C. (January 22, 2025)
India - Ministry of External Affairs
January 23, 2025
Shri Vinay Kwatra, Ambassador of India to the United States: Good morning, friends. It's a great pleasure for us to have honorable External Affairs Minister of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar amongst us for this brief press interaction. We will start with EAM making brief opening remarks. We will thereafter open to a brief set of questions. Before asking your question, I would suggest if you could please identify yourself and the organization that you represent and we could then take your questions in. Sir, over to you.
Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: Very good morning to all of you. So as you all know, I am here as Special Envoy of the Prime Minister for the inauguration of President Trump and Vice President Vance. So, I will run through probably what I was doing in the last two days and some of the discussions, share some of the substance of the discussions we've had.
So with regard to the inauguration ceremonies, I attended the swearing in. There was a church service before that. Evening there were socials. So it gave me an opportunity to meet a few other people there. I had an occasion to meet the Secretary of State, and since he was confirmed, we had our bilateral meeting yesterday at the Department of State.
There was also a Quad Foreign Ministers meeting, because all the Quad Foreign Ministers were here for the inaugural. Separately, I met National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz. I had met him in December when I came. And during the course of my stay, I also had the opportunity to interact with Speaker Johnson, with Majority Leader, Senator Thune. I made the acquaintance of six Cabinet members of the administration. So that's broadly the activities of the last two days. If I were to share my overall impressions, I would say, one, it was very clear that the Trump administration was keen to have India present at the inaugural itself, and they're clearly prioritizing the bilateral relationship. Secondly, I think in the meetings I had, it was also evident that they would like to build on the foundation of the relationship, a foundation which the first Trump administration also contributed a lot to building. But, you know, President Trump and Prime Minister Modi at that time took a number of initiatives, and we have seen that mature in many ways. And the third impression was with regard to the Quad. Again... a very strong sense that the current administration would reciprocate our desire as well, to take the Quad further, to intensify its activities. And I remind you that Quad itself was restarted in 2017 when in the United States, Donald Trump was the president.
Let me say a few words about the bilateral relationship because both in my meeting with Secretary Rubio as well as NSA Waltz, a lot of our discussion centered on the bilateral side. And, you know, in many ways I think between us and the Trump administration we approach the world both with a clear-eyed sense of our national interest, belief in the, you know, that the mutuality of benefits in any interaction. I think we have a very strong degree of trust today between India and the United States, a very high level of convergence of our interests, and a sense that while we serve our national interests, while we build our bilateral partnership, definitely on regional issues and global issues, there is a lot of good that we can do. So that sense of global good was also very evident conceptually in what we discussed.
In terms of the bilateral ties, I think now you do understand that this was the first day of the administration, so obviously we had a sort of essentially a broad brush conversation, didn't get too deep into details. But there was, I think, an agreement, a consensus between us that we need to be bolder, we need to be bigger, we need to be more ambitious. You know, the interactions between us should be more intensive. And some of the specifics we discussed ... we want to promote the ease of building the relationship. How do you make business, mobility, education, technology, defense, security ... how do you make it easier to do, between two countries who would like to do it. But there are the burden of regulations and the complexity of processes. So I did see an understanding and a recognition that we need to make this process much smoother than it has in the past, so that it actually enables us to achieve our shared objective, really, of this bolder, bigger, more ambitious relationship. When it came to various regulations and processes, I also flagged some concerns which are very widespread in India about delays in visas, and the relationship is not well served if it takes that many days for people to get a visa, because ultimately those visa delays do impact business. They do, you know, affect tourism. They do, in many ways, constrain the people-to-people interactions, which is the foundation of our relationship. When I spoke about the growing, strong trust between us; I think we would like to translate that trust more and more into an actual partnership. So whether it's technology, whether it's an industrial partnership, education, defense, security, really we are open in all domains. I think today the enthusiasm and the levels of comfort are very strong between India and the United States. So it was really a question, I mean, we were competing with each other to say, look, how faster, how much faster, how much, you know, further we can take this relationship and how best we can do that.
Just want to say a few words about the Quad as well, and then I'd be happy to respond to any questions or comments you have. For Secretary Rubio and Foreign Minister Iwaya of Japan, this was the first Quad meeting that they were attending. Minister Penny Wong, and I had done quite a few before. So in a way, it was sort of a stock-taking of the Quad. So each one of us came in with, you know, where we thought we were. But there was a very, I would say, animated exchange of ideas, and the sentiment in the room was very much that the Quad is a collaborative activity, and therefore it's important to continuously refresh it, to keep doing more and more, to keep adding substance. And I think we ended on the note that this year India would be hosting the Quad Leaders Summit, so between now and the summit, what are the new ideas, the fresh activities that we could contemplate. So we felt that this was something which our team should get to work to, and we ourselves as Ministers committed ourselves to monitoring it and meeting as required. Where the Quad is concerned, I would say the fact that the Quad Foreign Ministers' meeting was held on the first day of the administration at work, literally within hours of Secretary Rubio being sworn in, I think in a way the meeting itself was the message. So we all sort of noted that and proceeded accordingly.
So this was broadly, you know, what's been the activities of the last two days. I'm happy to respond to any questions that you may have. But overall, I again would say that it's been for me a great honor to represent the Prime Minister and the Government of India at this important occasion. And I do think that, you know, my presence here is not only a testament, a statement about the relationship, but it has also been a very valuable opportunity to get off to a very early start. Thank you.
Shri. Vinay Kwatra, Ambassador of India to the United States: Thank you, Sir. We'll now take two to three sets of questions. We'll start with the first, Saurabh, Yashwant, Lalit.
Saurabh Shukla, News Mobile: Minister, welcome to DC and a belated Happy Birthday to you. I am Saurabh Shukla from News Mobile. Minister, you spoke about the trust in the relationship and that was clearly visible in the manner in which the U.S. side accorded a red carpet welcome to you for this inaugural. There is a sense that President Trump, and he's spoken about it many times, about his special partnership with Prime Minister Modi. How soon do you see a summit meeting happening between President Trump and Prime Minister Modi, and what agenda is in the works for that?
Yashwant Raj, IANS: Minister this is Yashwant Raj from IANS. I have the same question as Saurabh, but I wanted to ask you if you could the Reuters report that the two leaders could meet in the next month or at least the attempts are around to get them to meet in the next month. And two, in the state department readout of your meeting with Secretary Rubio, it said Secretary Rubio raised something about irregular migration. I was wondering if that was another phrase for illegal people, Indians coming in between this [Inaudible].
Lalit Jha, PTI: Lalit Jha from PTI, Press Trust of India. Just to follow up on what Yashwant said, there's news reported in part of India that India is working with the Trump administration to deport about 18,000 undocumented Indians. Can you that [Inaudible]. And secondly, did any one of those officials of the Trump administration raise the issue which with the whole talks and the relationship of the court cases that are going on about Indian officials, former Indian officials and Indian businessmen.
Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: So the first question, observation, Saurabh, yes, I definitely as someone who's been involved in the relationship for many, many decades, I would say that the levels of trust are very high and not just because in a way the trust is a more systemic sentiment. I would also say there's a very visible chemistry between Prime Minister Modi and President Trump and that also in a sense percolates through the system and reinforces that comfort and trust that you have referred to. So there was a very visible appetite to get this relationship moving, to do more, to raise the bar, set bigger goals. So that was the sort of feeling in the room.
Now in terms of your query about, and what Yashwant also raised about possible meeting between the leadership, between the Prime Minister and the President. The administration has just come in. Understandably, at the moment everybody is focused on the inaugural ceremony. I mean they're also finding their feet and attending to the priorities of the day. But clearly there is an interest in taking the relationship forward. Now the exact mechanics of it, as and when we have something to tell you, we'd be happy to share with you. But I do remind you that the Prime Minister had a very early phone call with President Trump, and that I had come last month and made the initial contact with the NSA. So it should give you a direction in which today the relationship is going. At what point that direction reaches that culminating point, I think we'll have to wait and see.
In terms of your second observation, sorry, one other issue, Sourabh you asked about the agenda. Again, you know, there are these broad subjects, let us say defense and security or skills and education or technology. But within that, I think there's a lot of latitude, there's a lot of unexploited space, there are things - there are new things to do, but there's also the challenge of how do we do the regular things better than we were doing. So I think there was an openness to look at a lot of this, especially, you know, some of our concerns about process issues, delays. I think there was a very positive response, because that's also the outlook of the administration as a whole. How do we make governance more efficient and effective. So, if you have in the two countries two leaders who are very focused on effectiveness, and the quality and the speed of governance, efficiency of governance, naturally that is something which also percolates into the relationship as well.
In terms of the reference you made, Yashwant, to the irregular migration, yes, we had a discussion on a range of issues, and one of the issues which came up was actually mobility of people. Now, you know, we have a position on mobility which is a principled position ... applies to all countries. As a government, we obviously are very much supportive of legal mobility because we do believe in a global workplace. We want Indian talent and Indian skills to have the maximum opportunity at a global level. So at the same time, we are also very firmly opposed to illegal mobility and illegal migration because you also know that when something illegal happens, many other illegal activities get joined onto it, and this is not desirable, it's certainly not reputationally good. So with every country, and the U.S. is no exception, we have always taken the view that if there are any of our citizens who are not here legally, if we are sure that they are our citizens, we have always been, open to their legitimate return to India. So it's not a position unique to the United States. I mean, I do understand right now that there is a certain debate going on, and a resulting sensitivity which is there, but we have been consistent, we have been very principled about it, and that remains our position, and I conveyed that very clearly to Secretary Rubio. At the same time, I also told him that, look, while we understand all of this, and I also accept that these are autonomous processes, it is in our mutual interest to facilitate legal and mutually beneficial mobility. So as I said, you know, if it takes 400-odd days waiting period to get a visa, I don't think the relationship is well served by this. So I think he also noted that point.
So let us see how we take that forward. But, you know, while I've seen some numbers and I'm moving now to Lalit's question here, I've seen some numbers. I caution you about them, because for us a number is operative when we can actually validate the fact that the individual concerned is of Indian origin. So you know, we'll have to see how that goes, because it has ... as I said, the basis of their stay or, you know, or not able to stay, ... and the fact that at our end we have to verify that they are indeed Indians, because naturally there are sensitivities involved there as well.
On the court case issue, no, the subject did not come up.
Seema Sirohi, The Economic Times: Seema Sirohi, from the Economic Times, I am a columnist. How do you read the China policy? I know it's only two or three days. Given the fact that President Trump has gone beyond what the U.S. law says on TikTok, gone against the U.S. Supreme Court judgment, and wants to cut a deal on TikTok. Does it tell you that he is willing to sort of overlook national security concerns? So what's your read so far on China policy? Because from India's point of view, that would be an important policy, right, how he executes it. Thank you.
Vishnudatta Jayaraman, News India Times, South Asian Herald: Good morning, Foreign Minister. This is Vishnudatta Jayaraman, from News India Times, South Asian Herald. What are the primary concerns you are personally hearing from Indian-American lawmakers, policy experts, and community organizations? And did you get a chance to convey these concerns to U.S. officials? And what is your sense on how they are trying to engage with India? And the second question is, as the Prime Minister's special envoy for the inauguration, could you share some key highlights and what aspects stood out to you the most? Thank you.
Satpal, Punjab Post and Third Eye Media: Satpal, from Punjab Post and Third Eye Media. Sir, my question is not related to today's event, lots of my colleagues ... [inaudible]. I want to take you back, last year jab aap Amritsar mein gaye the tho Punjab ke logo ne aapke samne ek baat rakhi thi - trade with Pakistan. Aur uske baad aap Pakistan bhi gaye. Aur do issue hain trade ke aur jo Pakistan se drug aa rahi hain. Uske sath law and order ki situation bahot kharab hai Punjab mein. Wahan ki police station hain unki diware unchi ki ja rahi hain, aur wahan ke jo raste hain, [inaudible]. Toh Indian government ka iske bare mei [inaudible] trade through Wagah border, and Drug and Law and Order especially in border areas.
[Question in Hindi: Approximate Translation] Satpal, from Punjab Post and Third Eye Media. Sir, my question is not related to today's event; many of my colleagues [inaudible]. I want to take a year back and ask you about something. Last year, when you visited Amritsar, the people of Punjab brought up an issue with you regarding trade with Pakistan. After that, you also visited Pakistan. There are two issues: one is related to trade, and the other concerns the drugs coming from Pakistan, which have severely impacted law and order in Punjab. The walls of police stations there are being raised higher, and the roads in those areas [inaudible]. What is the Indian government [inaudible] trade through Wagah border, and Drug and Law and Order especially in border areas.
Prashant Jha, Hindustan Times: Prashant Jha, Hindustan Times. So one question which is beyond the bilateral. Do you have a view on U.S. sovereign decisions to withdraw from the Paris agreement, from WHO. Do you see these as criticisms of multilateral organizations, including the UN? Do you see this as creating a vacuum that other players in the international system could fill in? My second question is on something that Secretary Rubio mentioned in his statement, which was a positive looking phrase on economic ties. Could you give me a sense of the conversation on the economy that you had with him, including trade, and whether there is a possibility of a trade agreement between the two sides? Or, whether you anticipate, [inaudible]?
Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: So, Seema, let me respond to your question. I mean, look, what is the policy of an American administration towards China is either for the Americans to explain or the Chinese to commit. It's not for me publicly to take a position on it. I'm obviously dealing with the world. We obviously reflect on various developments. What I can say, you know, as someone who's come here, interacted with the key foreign policy figures of the administration, certainly, is the positive sentiment they have for our country and for our relationship. If you ask me, okay, go beyond that, the bit I can share with you is, what we discussed during the Quad. And, during the Quad, the sentiment was very clear that the Indo-Pacific is a very crucial region, that it's important, that there is stability there, there is security there, there is respect for law. So, I think some of it was very succinctly captured in that statement which was there. So, but beyond that, another bilateral relationship for me to comment publicly I don't think really would be appropriate.
Regarding Mr. Jayaraman, your question about Indo-American lawmakers, I did meet ... I did, you know, encounter, I sort of bumped into Mr. Thanedar at the inaugural ceremony. I think I saw Ami Bera at a distance, but I didn't really have an opportunity because, you know this visit, one entire day really was focused around the inauguration events, and yesterday on the Quad and the bilateral. So, this is not an occasion where I can say anything more because I've not had a chance to spend time with them. On the inaugural highlights, look, I mean, to me, though I have been dealing with this country for more than 40 years, it was the first time I was myself at an inauguration and obviously, you know, it was something which was very impressive. As I said, you know, I was there at the Rotunda observing the swearing in, and between the prayer service and the social occasions, you got a flavor really of the sentiment or the interaction of various people who are there, their enthusiasm. I mean, what I saw was really a very confident, upbeat incoming administration. I mean, that feeling that, look, we need to get things done, and where India is concerned, that you are a partner with whom we can get things done. That because there is already a strong chemistry between the President and the Prime Minister. There is a previous administration with whom ... you know, which we were the same at that point of time ... that there is that history of working together. So that buoyancy and that confidence which I saw generally. If you look at it, I mean, the last 48 hours, I mean, it's been an extraordinarily active administration. And not just last 48 hours, they were actually very active even before they actually assumed office. So I think that energy which I could experience. I can tell you, in many ways, is fully reflected on the Indian side, and we would certainly like to use that to take our relationship to a higher level.
Satpal ji jo aapka prashn jo tha trade with Pakistan. Dekhiye trade humne to band nahi kiya jo kiya. Unke prashasan ne jo 2019 mei nirnay liye gaye ki bharat ke sath vyapar nahi karna who unke side se tha. Toh hamara jo is mudde ke bare mei hamari chinta jo thi, shuru se hamara hit tha ki hamain MFN status mile. Hum Pakistan ko MFN status dete the, woh humko nahi dete the. Toh aaj pichle saal ke baad Pakistan se sath baith ke aisi koi baat nahi hui vyapar ke bare mei na unke yahan se aisa koi initative aaya hai. Jo drugs ke bare mei jo aap keh rahe ho woh toh sabko jankari hai ismei ki wahan se drugs kafi sankhya se aati hain, aur ye chintajanak vishay hai. Aur wahan jo law and order, aap pakistan ki law and order ki baat kare ya border area ki law and order? Dekhiye jo hamare yahan jo internal affairs hain aap jante hain ki main desh ke bahar ja ke iske bare mei tippani nahi karta. Toh jo bhi hamare administrative challenges hain hum nipat lenge uske sath, ye toh hum par hi nirbhar hai isko kaise response karein.
[Answer in Hindi: Approximate Translation] Satpal ji, regarding your question about trade with Pakistan, let me clarify that we did not stop the trade. The decision to halt trade with India was made by their administration in 2019. Our concern on this matter has always been getting MFN (Most Favored Nation) status. We had granted MFN status to Pakistan, but they never reciprocated. Since last year, there has been no dialogue with Pakistan about trade, nor has there been any initiative from their side. As for the issue of drugs, which you mentioned, it is well-known that a significant amount of drugs come from there, and this is indeed a matter of concern. Regarding law and order, are you referring to the law and order situation in Pakistan or in the border areas? Look, as far as our internal affairs are concerned, you know that I do not comment on these matters while abroad. Whatever administrative challenges we face, we will handle them. It entirely depends on us how we respond to them.
Prashant your question on, you know, what is our reaction. Look, every country has a sovereign right to take decisions, about what are their international commitments and responsibilities. So we can have our respective views on it. I mean, obviously, it's not necessarily identical for countries, but I think that's a decision they have taken. I mean, different countries may have their own view and their own stance in that regard. But, you know, it is their decision, so I leave it at that. On your issue on economic ... you asked me, give me a sense of the economic discussion.
There was a discussion both with the Secretary as well as with the NSA. Not in detail, again. I mean, please do appreciate that we are running a tight timeline. We had, you know, also a Quad to do. But the overall sense is, look, there are a lot of opportunities here. The U.S. today, you know, in an era of more technology-centric progress ... the messaging I got very clearly was, look, we appreciate the value of India as a partner. There are domains we want to work on. There are systemic things we need to do to sort of optimize collaboration. Obviously, I mean, there will be the economic interests of the two countries. You know, we will sit down and talk about it and discuss that when the moment is opportune. But on this particular occasion, we didn't get into that kind of detail. Partly because of the occasion, and partly because trade matters are really for the trade teams to do. You know, on either side, it's not my direct jurisdiction, nor was it those of the people I was meeting. But, for me, the deeper sentiment was really the takeaway, saying, look, you know, you have your interests, we have ours, we have to harmonize it, we have to get the best out of it. We are very confident that, you know, I didn't get the sense of it being a zero-sum game. I saw it as much more collaborative. And a lot of, I would say, attention on iCET, on, you know, semiconductors, on supply chains. I mean, it was much more that than the other issues.
Shri Vinay Kwatra, Ambassador of India to the United States: Thank you very much. External Affairs Minister has another engagement. Okay, Ms. Poonam, I think got left out. No, last question. Sorry, we have another engagement here. Yes, please.
Poonam: Thank you. Minister, in your discussions with National Security Advisor Waltz and Secretary Rubio, were there any - did you touch upon the treatment of minorities in Bangladesh? One, and secondly, in the past few years, there have been a lot of threats to Indian diplomats and there was a - you know, the attack on the consulate in San Francisco. Do you feel that this administration will be more cognizant of national security threats to India?
Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister: The first question, yes, we had a brief discussion on Bangladesh. I don't think it's appropriate I get into more details.
On the second question, I didn't, on this occasion, raise those issues. But I do want to say that the attack on our - the arson attack on our consulate in San Francisco is a very, very serious matter. And it is something which we expect accountability. And we would like to see that people who did it are held responsible.
Shri Vinay Kwatra, Ambassador of India to the United States: Thank you very much, sir. This brings to a close this morning's special briefing.
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