Thursday’s meeting between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will take place in the midst of the diplomatic scuffle between India and Canada over the killing of a Khalistani separatist. The most recent diplomatic crisis between two of America’s allies, its traditional ally Canada and India, is anticipated to be a major topic of discussion during the talks, though officials from both sides are mum on the agenda.
“I don’t want to preview the conversations he (Blinken) will have in that meeting (with Jaishankar) , but as we’ve made clear, we’ve raised this; we have engaged with our Indian counterparts on this and encouraged them to cooperate with the Canadian investigation, and we continue to encourage them to cooperate,” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters.
He was responding to inquiries regarding the encounter between Jaishankar and Blinken that took place on Thursday afternoon (roughly midnight local India time) at the State Department’s Foggy Bottom headquarters. Prior to the meeting, the two leaders are anticipated to strike a photo op but avoid taking questions from the media. Although the two top diplomats’ meeting was planned well in advance of the Canadian crisis, the US has been pressuring India to assist in the Canadian investigation into the murder of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia at the beginning of the year.
Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada, has claimed that Nijjar, 45, was murdered on June 18 in Surrey, British Columbia, outside a gurdwara. In 2020, India deemed Nijjar to be a terrorist. In retaliation for Ottawa’s expulsion of an Indian official, India rejected the accusations as “absurd” and “motivated” and expelled a senior Canadian diplomat. India has also requested that Canada take stronger action against terrorists and anti-Indian elements operating from its territory and has suspended Canadian visa services.
After attending the United Nations’ annual General Assembly meeting on Tuesday, Jaishankar traveled from New York to the nation’s capital. In addition to his meeting with Blinken, the external affairs minister is anticipated to meet with a number of high-ranking members of the Biden administration, review the developments between the two nations since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic State Visit in June, and discuss additional regional and global issues. The minister is also anticipated to communicate with members of the diaspora, think tankers, and business executives.
