“Saint Lucia regards India as trustworthy, dependable leader of Global South," says Foreign Minister
Sep 24, 2023
New York [US], September 24 : Lauding India’s “progression as a champion” of developing nations, Saint Lucia Foreign Minister Alva Romanus Baptiste, said that Castries considers New Delhi as a “trustworthy and dependable” leader.
The Saint Lucia Minister praised India’s global contribution during the Covid pandemic, which ranged from fastracking funds to support the frontline workers as well as carrying out a public assistance program.
Addressing the ‘India-UN for Global South: Delivering for Development’ event in New York City, Alva Romanus Baptiste, said, “In the over 40 years of our diplomatic relations, Saint Lucia has witnessed India’s progression as a champion of developing nations and its emergence over the last decade as a strong and powerful voice of the Global South. This was not a product of spontaneous combustion”.
“This was not a sudden discovery, but because of the strength in India’s internal machinery and preparation for the inevitable,” he added.
He further lauded India’s G20 presidency for giving a voice to the countries of the Global South and called New Delhi a “trustworthy and dependable” leader.
“During the G20 presidency, India ensured that the G20 priorities were shaped with not just the G20 partners, but also the partners of Global South, whose voice often goes unheard…India’s presidency was matched by a resolute champion of the cause of Global South as much as their own challenges,” Baptiste said.
He added, “Saint Lucia regards India as a trustworthy and dependable leader of the Global South in these challenging times, which has not only elaborated its collaborative spirit in pursuing compromise but has also walked the talk in cooperation and developments to those who need”.
Baptiste also heaped praises on the India-UN Fund, for supporting sovereign-owned and led, demand-driven, transformational and sustainable projects across the developing world, with a focus on the most vulnerable, least developed countries, and small island developing states.
“Saint Lucia commends the government of India for their consistent leadership and steadfast commitment to the delivery of development…Against the backdrop of a cascading crisis, Saint Lucia looks to India as the nation which is step forward to find a middle-ground in the East-West North-South Divide to build the necessary bridges, command respect and have something to show for it,” he stated.
He also lauded India’s Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) since gaining independence, which provided wider options for the developing countries, to avoid getting embroiled in the power politics that prevailed at the time.
