Military solutions not working, give diplomacy a chance: Jaishankar at G20

Washington, India on Friday said military solutions will not work in tackling global challenges and diplomacy must be given a chance to address such issues. Military solutions not working, give diplomacy a chance: Jaishankar at G20Addressing the first plenary session of the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Atlanta, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also flagged the issue of attacks on seafarers and stressed the need to preserve freedom of navigation and ensure cessation of attacks within the framework of international law, especially UNCLOS.

"Emphasised that in the face of global challenges, military solutions will not work and diplomacy must be given a chance," Jaishankar said in a post on X, listing out the points he made at the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting hosted by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Jaishankar's comments came against the backdrop of ongoing conflicts in different parts of the world, including the Russia-Ukraine war and tensions in West Asia. Jaishankar said the right to industrialise is being denied through the flooding of markets, weaponising supply chains, constricting market access and encouraging market distortions.

"This must cease," he said. The minister also stressed the importance of building resilient and alternative connectivity as the world de-risks and diversifies. "Tactical calculations should not lead to overlooking the dangers of terrorism.

It is a high-risk activity which has come back to bite even the practitioners," he said. Jaishankar said the Global South is disproportionately bearing the consequences of attacks on civilian shipping and seafarers, jeopardising the availability and cost of fuel, food and fertilisers.

At least 22 Indians, including 14 seafarers, have lost their lives since the war began in West Asia in February this year. Jaishankar, who arrived in Atlanta late Thursday evening, interacted with his counterparts from several countries ahead of the meeting.

Opening the two-day deliberations, Rubio warned that the world faces a moment of choosing amid mounting economic and geopolitical crises. "I hope this will be a productive meeting today, as we are in a critical moment. I would call it a moment of choosing, and I would say not just for my country, the United States of America, but frankly for the world," Rubio told the gathering, which also included Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who was seated between his counterparts from Mexico and Saudi Arabia.

"We are facing a series of interconnected economic and geopolitical crises, many of which pose severe threats to essential foundations of the global economic order, new disruptions and strains to global energy and food markets, to the global supply chain, to trade, to freedom of navigation itself," he said.

He said the G20 "must work together to confront these threats, to strengthen our economic resilience, to safeguard our markets and the economies that they sustain..." The meeting comes amid deep rifts among the G20 countries over global crises.

"At today's G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting, I made clear that maritime and food security drive economic security. Through our America First agenda, the United States is encouraging partners to protect shipping routes, strengthen food security, and reduce the economic consequences of geopolitical crises," Rubio posted on X after his address.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Department of State said that throughout the ministerial, the US will work with G20 partners to address geopolitical crises contributing to global economic shocks, including threats to freedom of navigation, energy and food security, and supply chains.

The US is scheduled to host the G20 Leaders' Summit in Miami on December 14-15.