External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has been blunt in his response to journalists who try to put pressure on India over issues like Russian oil import and terrorism. Recently, the minister was in Austria on the second leg of his two-nation tour where he appeared in an interview with Austria's ZIB2 podcast, a daily news magazine of ORF television. The minister dealt with many questions ranging from Pakistan to Russia and shut the journalist down with his responses. His responses have gone viral on social media. 


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The journalist also asked Jaishankar, "Would you consider India an ally of Russia?" The question was seemingly an attempt to put India down in the context of the Russia-Ukrain war. However, Jaishankar responded cleverly on the issue. "We are an independent country. We don't define ourselves or perceive ourselves in alliance terms. That's very much western terminology. It's not a term that we use," said Jaishankar. 


Speaking about Russian oil imports, Jaishankar said that Europe has reduced its import in a manner that it feels is comfortable. "At $60,000 per capita income, you are so caring about your population, I have a population of $2000 that also need energy. I am not in a position to pay high prices. The price of oil has doubled. Europe is also moving into the middle east and diverting production out of the middle-east to Europe and raising prices. Therefore, Europe is putting pressure on the global oil market," said Jaishankar.



When questioned about his 'epicentre of terrorism' phrase about Pakistan, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar said that he could have used much harsher words for India's neighbour for its role in promoting cross-border terrorism even as he criticised Europe for not "condemning the practices that have been going on for multiple decades."


During the ZIB2 podcast when the anchor said that Pakistan does not spread terrorism as a country, Jaishankar responded, "If you control your sovereign space, which I believe they do. If terrorist camps operate in broad daylight in cities with recruitment and financing, can you really tell me that the Pakistani state doesn't know what's going on? Especially, they are being trained in military-level, combat tactics."


The foreign minister also hit out at the European countries for not condemning Pakistan. "When we speak about judgments and principles, why don't I hear sharp European condemnation of these practices that have been going on for decades?" he said.