Ukraine war, EU security dominate India’s Raisina Dialogue, but China is far from forgotten

Russia’s war in Ukraine loomed large at India’s premier foreign policy conference, but there was also plenty of discussion about China’s growing assertiveness

India’s Foreign minister S. Jaishankar issued a strong rebuttal after facing thinly veiled criticism about New Delhi’s above-the-fray stance on Ukraine

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India, New Delhi: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) meets with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday. Photo: European Commission/dpa

Published: 5:57pm, 29 Apr 2022Updated: 7:12pm, 29 Apr 2022

“How do you deal with China?”

The question makes former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott laugh.

“How do you deal with something as strong, as dangerous … well, you deal with China with great care,” Abbott says.

That moment epitomised this year’s Raisina Dialogue, the annual conference on geopolitics and geoeconomics, hosted by India’s Ministry of External Affairs and the Observer Research Foundation think tank in New Delhi.

Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott speaks during a press conference in August 2017. Speaking at the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi, Abbott said you need “great care” to deal with China. Photo: AP

Abbott’s comment occurred just minutes into a panel discussion on Wednesday on the European dilemma over trade and security in respect to Beijing’s presence in the Indo-Pacific region.

Europe was the focus of the conference, as 8 of the 14 ministers invited to speak were from the continent. The summit was inaugurated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and almost every discussion had a European flavour – from multilateralism, to the EU’s flagship connectivity project, the Global Gateway project to a more assertive European presence in the Indo-Pacific.