Jaishankar On PM Modi's Leadership: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday drew a parallel with Lord Hanuman to assert that nations are shaped by leadership, not individuals alone. While interacting with Yuvraj Malik, director of the National Book Trust, on `Diplomacy to Discourse' at the Pune Literature Festival, he hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership and his vision.
When asked if one Jaishankar is enough for the country, Jaishankar said, "Your question is wrong. You should have asked me: there is one Modi. Because ultimately, shri Hanuman finally serves... Countries are defined by leaders and vision. There are people who execute it. But ultimately, it is the vision, the leadership, and the confidence that makes the difference today."
World Today Is Like Coalition Politics: Jaishankar
Speaking on evolving geopolitics, the External Affairs Minister said the global political situation was like "coalition politics" with constantly shifting alignments, and India should focus on its own interests while remaining nimble.
"In our country, there was an era of coalition politics. The world today is like coalition politics. There is no majority of anyone. No coalition enjoys a majority. So what is happening is that constantly combinations are formed, deals are struck, somebody is up, somebody is down. This is completely a multipolar world where there are multiple partners," said Jaishankar.
His mantra for dealing with this fluid situation was to choose what serves India's interests, he said. "....we have to be very nimble. Sometimes, you are with someone with one issue and with another on another issue. All the while I have one principle -- what is helping my country. Whatever helps my country, that would be my choice," the minister said.
(With PTI inputs)