S Jaishankar arrives in US for UNGA high-level meet; Counter-terrorism, climate action on agenda

International

oi-Deepika S

New
York,
Sep
19:
External
Affairs
Minister
S
Jaishankar
has
reached
the
United
States
to
take
part
in
the
UN
General
Assembly
session.
Counter-terrorism,
peacekeeping,
reformed
multilateralism,
climate
action,
and
equitable
access
to
COVID-19
vaccines
will
be
among
the
key
focus
areas
for
India
during
the
session.

He
is
also
scheduled
to
hold
talks
with
US
Secretary
of
State
Antony
Blinken
and
other
senior
officials
of
the
Biden
Administration.

Jaishankar
will
be
in
New
York
from
September
18
to
24,
while
he
will
visit
Washington
DC
from
September
25
to
28,
according
to
the
Ministry
of
External
Affairs
(MEA).

In
New
York,
the
external
affairs
minister
(EAM)
will
be
leading
the
India
delegation
for
the
“high-level
week”
at
the
77th
session
of
the
UN
General
Assembly
(UNGA),
it
said.

Queen’s
death:
EAM
Jaishankar
signs
condolence
book
at
UK
High
Commission

The
theme
of
the
77th
UNGA
is
“A
Watershed
Moment:
Transformative
Solutions
to
Interlocking
Challenges.”

UNGA
session
on
Sep
24

Jaishankar’s
address
at
the
UNGA
session
is
scheduled
for
the
forenoon
of
September
24.

“In
keeping
with
India’s
strong
commitment
to
reformed
multilateralism,
the
EAM
will
be
hosting
a
ministerial
meeting
of
the
G4
as
well
as
participating
at
the
High
Level
Meeting
of
the
L
69
Group
on
“Reinvigorating
Multilateralism
and
Achieving
Comprehensive
Reform
of
the
UN
Security
Council,”
the
MEA
said.

While
G4
comprises
India,
Brazil,
Japan
and
Germany,
the
L.69
group
consists
of
developing
countries
from
Asia,
Africa,
Latin
America,
the
Caribbean
and
Small
Island
Developing
States
with
a
focus
on
reforms
of
the
UN
Security
Council.

To
commemorate
and
showcase
Azadi
Ka
Amrit
Mahotsav,
Jaishankar
would
be
addressing
a
special
event
‘India@75:
Showcasing
India
UN
Partnership
in
Action’ on
September
24,
which
would
highlight
the
country’s
development
journey
and
its
contributions
to
South-South
Cooperation,
the
MEA
said.

The
event
is
expected
to
be
addressed
by
the
President
of
the
77th
UNGA,
along
with
Foreign
Ministers
of
several
member
states,
and
the
UNDP
Administrator.

The
MEA
said
Jaishankar
“would
also
be
participating
in
plurilateral
meetings
of
the
Quad,
IBSA,
BRICS,
India
—
Presidency
Pro
Tempore
CELAC,
India-CARICOM
and
other
trilateral
formats,
such
as
India-France-Australia,
India-France-UAE
and
India-Indonesia-Australia.”

The
IBSA
is
a
forum
which
brings
together
India,
Brazil
and
South
Africa.

EAM
Jaishankar
meets
Saudi
Crown
Prince
Mohammed
Bin
Salman

BRICS
meeting

The
BRICS
(Brazil-Russia-India-China-South
Africa)
has
emerged
as
a
key
grouping.

The
BRICS
meeting
is
expected
to
be
attended
by
Chinese
Foreign
Minister
Wang
Yi
and
his
Russian
counterpart
Sergey
Lavrov.

The
MEA
said
Jaishankar
will
also
have
bilateral
meetings
with
foreign
ministers
of
the
G20
countries
and
UNSC
member
states,
amongst
others.
The
external
affairs
minister
is
also
meeting
with
UN
Secretary-General
Antonio
Guterres
and
the
77th
President
of
the
UN
General
Assembly,
Csaba
Korosi.

After
completion
of
the
UNGA-related
engagements,
Jaishankar
will
visit
Washington
DC
for
bilateral
meetings
with
US
interlocutors.

“His
programme
includes
inter
alia,
discussions
with
his
counterpart
Secretary
of
State
Antony
Blinken;
senior
members
of
the
US
Administration,
US
business
leaders,
a
round-table
focused
on
S&T
and
interaction
with
the
Indian
diaspora,”
the
MEA
said.

“The
EAM’s
visit
would
enable
a
high-level
review
of
the
multifaceted
bilateral
agenda
and
strengthen
cooperation
on
regional
and
global
issues
to
further
consolidate
the
India-US
strategic
partnership,”
it
said.