EAM Jaishankar meets UN chief Guterres; discusses Sudan developments, G20 Presidency, Ukraine

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday and discussed.

The worsening situation in Sudan. During the discussion, Jaishankar also underscored the need for ‘successful diplomacy’ which can lead to an early ceasefire and create a ground situation for the safety and welfare of people.

Other than the Sudan violence, the two leaders also discussed other issues, including India’s presidency of the G20 and the Ukraine conflict.

“Good to meet UN Secretary General @antonioguterres in New York today afternoon. Discussed the current developments in Sudan, G20 Presidency and Ukraine,” he tweeted.

“Focus understandably was on Sudan. India strongly supports efforts towards an early ceasefire, leading to creation of safe corridors. Will continue to work closely with UN and other partners in this regard,” he said.

EAM JAISHANKAR’s FIRST VISIT TO LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES

Jaishankar is headed on a nine-day trip to Guyana, Panama, Colombia and the Dominican Republic beginning on Friday, his first visit as the external affairs minister to these Latin American countries and the Caribbean.

Before his trip to Latin America, he arrived in New York.

He said while his trip to South America was planned quite a while ago, he “came here to the UN mainly because once the fighting started (in Sudan) on the 14th (of April), you could immediately see that this was very serious and a lot of people were trapped by the situation.”

“We knew that the UN itself has a large presence in Sudan. This will be the centre. Because at this moment, what is needed is diplomacy, successful diplomacy because it’s only diplomacy which can create the ground situation for the safety and welfare of the people out there,” Jaishankar told journalists at the United Nations after his meeting with Guterres.

Noting that he had a “very good meeting” with Guterres, Jaishankar said once the fighting in Sudan started out, “I felt that it was very important” that he met the UN Secretary-General Guterres.

“Most of our meeting was on the Sudan situation. We also, of course, discussed the G20 and we also spent some time on the Ukraine conflict. But essentially it was about the Sudan situation”, he said.

Jaishankar said that in Sudan, the UN is at “the heart of the efforts” to establish a ceasefire.

“And that is really key because at the moment, unless there is a ceasefire and unless there are corridors, it is not safe for people to really come out,” he said.

“The UN is doing its bit talking to everybody. We, of course, have a very strong interest in the matter because so many Indians are there,” Jaishankar added.

INDIAN KILLED IN SUDAN VIOLENCE

Around 300 people, including an Indian, have been killed, and more than 3,000 injured in clashes in Sudan, according to the World Health Organisation.

The violence between forces from Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) erupted on Saturday.

Jaishankar said New Delhi is in touch with a number of countries and he has spoken to Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia Faisal bin Farhan and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

“We have been in touch with the Americans, I have also been in touch with my British counterpart,” he said. Earlier this morning, he had a “long conversation” with the Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry about being Sudan’s neighbour and having a “strong interest and strong understanding.”

“So, the focus is really how do you get the diplomatic processes to yield the desired result. The desired result is a workable, on-the-ground observed ceasefire. And then to take the next step, which is how do you create corridors for movement, what are the options for movement, what are the assembly points,” Jaishankar said.

Meanwhile, the team in New Delhi is in “continuous touch” with the Indians in Sudan, advising them, “saying we know it’s very difficult for everybody, but keep calm, don’t take unnecessary risk. They’ll have to wait for this to sort itself out, he said.

“I hope that the efforts, including that led by the Secretary-General, will yield to something very soon. But we will have to wait and see,” Jaishankar said.