EAM Jaishankar meets several of his counterparts in Germany; discusses bilateral ties, global affairs

Munich: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has met his counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Norway, Portugal, Poland and Belgium, and discussed bilateral ties and global matters like the situation in West Asia and reformed multilateralism.

Jaishankar is in Germany to attend the prestigious Munich Security Conference, which is the world's leading forum for debate on international security.

He held "a productive conversation" with his Saudi Arabian counterpart Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud on the sideline of the conference.

"Discussed connectivity, the West Asia situation and our strategic partnership," Jaishankar posted on X on Saturday.

He held a "big picture chat" with his Norwegian counterpart Espen Barth Eide and spoke about the imperative of reformed multilateralism and a more equitable world order.

Jaishankar said it was a "pleasure" to meet his Portugal counterpart Joao Gomes Cravinho in Munich.

"Shared views on recent global developments," he posted on X.

Jaishankar held "a deep discussion" on the Russia-Ukraine conflict with his counterpart from Poland Radoslaw Sikorski.

"Also exchanged views on our bilateral cooperation in different domains," Jaishankar posted on X.

He also met his Belgian counterpart, Hadja Lahbib.

"Glad to work with the Belgian Presidency of the EU, as well as in advancing our bilateral ties," Jaishankar said on X.

He also held a warm conversation with Friedrich Merz, the Leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party in Germany.

"Recognise his strong support for deeper India-Germany and India-EU relations," Jaishankar said.

He also held a meeting with German Foreign and Security Policy Advisor Jens Plotner.

"Appreciate his insights and assessments," Jaishankar said on X.

He held a useful exchange of views on contemporary politics with former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

He joined his Saudi Arabian counterpart Faisal, Former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper: Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission EU fit for Digital Age and Commissioner for Competition and Meghan O'Sullivan, former US deputy national security adviser on Iraq and Afghanistan for a discussion.

The session was titled Vishwa Mitra: Bridging the Divide' and hosted by Observer Research Foundation, an independent global think tank.

"A lively discussion on the world order; past, present and upcoming," Jaishankar posted on X.

He also spoke to two leading German dailies - Handelsblatt and Die Zeit.

He also met with Fred Kempe, chief executive officer of the Atlantic Council, a foreign policy think tank and public policy group based in Washington.

He interacted with the Munich Young Leaders for 2024 and urged them to take a positive approach towards global challenges and seek collaborative solutions.

"Also shared my own perspectives of a changing world," Jaishankar said.