On Thursday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar described the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing conflict in Ukraine as having had a “very traumatic” effect on the world economy and foresaw “difficult and turbulent” times ahead. He spoke at the External Affairs and Defense Commission of the Senate’s Joint Secretary Session in Rome.
Addressing the session, Jaishankar said, “We see very frankly, very difficult times ahead, very turbulent times ahead…Over the past five years, the impact of COVID-19 has been deeply traumatic, not only on the global economy but also on societies. There are still many countries and many societies which have not recovered from it”.
The External Affairs Minister highlighted that numerous countries are grappling with financial crises and debt issues, further exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
“We have seen, that progress in sustainable development goals, in many countries, has been rolled back, and many more countries today are facing, a financial economic crisis, and debt is a very big problem. Trade has been very challenging,” Jaishankar said.
He also mentioned how the conflict in Ukraine was having an impact on the world, saying, “We have the conflict in Ukraine…In today’s globalized world, it has an impact everywhere. Naturally, Europe is the area most impacted, but other areas have also experienced inflation, food insecurity, and energy issues, all of which have been directly impacted by the developments in the Ukraine conflict in many cases.” Italy’s historical significance as one of India’s oldest connections to Europe and its significant contributions to fortifying cooperation with the European Union were highlighted by Jaishankar.