Great sense of pride in nation about itself, says EAM Jaishankar on foreign policy becoming a vote-determining issue

New Delhi [India], March 20 : External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that there is a greater sense of pride in the nation now and that over the last five years he has seen foreign policy becoming a vote-determining issue.
Speaking at News 18 Rising Bharat Summit 2024 on Wednesday, the external affairs minister said that the sentiment is growing as there is a great sense of pride in the nation about itself.
"As people's basic necessity is met, there is a new thought pervading the middle-class. People today know that water, electricity, health needs will be provided," Jaishankar said.
The External Affairs Minister said, "When I go out and explain foreign policy I would say Modi ki guarantee works outside as much as it works back home....You know the Modi ki guarantee also applies that we keep petrol prices at a reasonable price by not bowing down to political pressure."
Highlighting the second factor, Jaishankar said that today, a lot of people go out to work, or on travel, adding that there are tourists of various kinds.
"Something abroad, in some ways, affects their livelihood. So, the connection between being treated well abroad, being looked at well abroad and their existence is also stronger," he said.
The third factor would be the G20, said the foreign minister adding that even in small towns, the G20 Summit garnered a great sense of connection.
"The G20 actually ended up with initial concerns about how we get it out of Delhi. But we actually ended up with the entire country owning the G20. In very small towns...G20 has a great sense of connection," the external affairs minister said.
Jaishankar said, "Finally, in a very peculiar way, Covid...We sent vaccines outside at a critical moment, and we got oxygen from outside. Somewhere, the connection with the world made more awareness."
Responding to why the G20 Summit permeated to the level of common man, the foreign minister said that the entire country owned the G20. "We ran G20 in 60 towns and cities like an Andolan, like a Jan Bhagidaari."
"I have been doing G20 for ten years. This is the only G20 where you went to a place, you had a meeting, but there are universities running events on G20, there were a bunch of NGOs that were doing something on G20, and the population was out there displaying their culture. It had a flair and an impact, which was very different," he added.
"To be honest, I dont think people expected us to succeed... In the Indonesian presidency every meeting was blocked. But India took a less defensive strategy," Jaishankar said.
Asked about the Citizenship Ammendment Act (CAA) and how he is dealing with criticism of the western countries, Jaishankar said, "this is an issue of correcting a certain situation of our history."
"It is a question of being just, of being fair to those people who were caught on the wrong side of history at the time when partition happened.... If you look at the predicament of these people, these are stateless people who are stateless because of no fault of theirs. Because political leaders of a certain era got it wrong. somebody is righitng a wrong. They are not wronging anybody, they are actually righting a situation where a wrong has been done to many people," the foreign minister said.
Jaishankar said that just like companies are audited, countries and policies should also be audited and people should look at what happened in the past with an open mind with a critical mind.
"Because in the earlier years, it was very much a Nehruvian ideological bubble. Nehru was against America, so everybody was against America. Nehru said China is a great friend so everybody says that China is a great friend, so the vestiges of that continue" he said.
Asked about the BJP looking at South India as their new frontier, Jaishankar said that that political opinion in the southern states was changing as people have seen benefits of good governance.