India being weakest link in Quad just a narrative, says Dhruva Jaishankar

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on an important visit to the US that has seen him holding several high-profile parleys in addition to attending the UN General Assembly. In addition to bilateral meetings with global leaders, PM Modi has been meeting global business leaders as well. These meets are taking place on the sidelines of UNGA.

WION's Executive Editor Palki Sharma Upadhyay spoke with Dhruva Jaishankar, Director of US Initiative, Observer Research Foundation, about PM Modi's US visit.

He disagreed with a general assertion that suggested that India was the weakest link in the Quad grouping which includes US, Australia, Japan and India.

Watch | Bilaterals & Quad are the two key aspects of PM Modi's US Visit: Dhruva Jaishankar | WION-USA Direct

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"India being weak link in Quad is just a narrative perpetuated by certain people in US," he said.

He added that those making such a claim had ulterior motives.

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The Quad-- a grouping of US, India, Australia and Japan -- is often perceived as coming together of countries to counter Chinese influence and increasing Chinese assertiveness. However, Quad countries have always maintained that it is not against any nation. In spite of this, the perception of opposition to China remains associated with the Quad.

"How do you deal with a challenge you would not spell out?" asked Palki Sharma-Upadhyay referring to Quad's denial of being against China and yet making moves that are perceived as such.

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On this, Jaishankar drew attention to the diplomatic practice adopted by countries all over the world to be guarded in public about such issues. China itself does that, he said, mentioning the disparity between China's public stance over Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the "real reason" behind some of China's foreign investments.

On Afghanistan, Jaishankar said that US withdrawal was a "botched" one. He said that proponents of the withdrawal argue that it has made the US free to tackle issues like Chinese assertiveness while opponents say that US withdrawal created a power vacuum in Afghanistan.

India, in his opinion, need not look at US for solution to Afghan situation. Jaishankar mentioned that India was talking with possible partners like Iran, Russia and central Asian countries in this regard. He also mentioned that US-Pakistan relations were not in "greatest health"

Jaishankar did not sound too optimistic about United Nations Security Council reforms. He said that veto-holding countries too invested in the power were not keen to dilute their position in the council. But he also stressed that this did not mean that India should stop advocating for the reforms and a permanent position for itself in the Security Council.