Modi Government Focusing on Promoting Manufacturing: External Minister

Increasing India's domestic manufacturing and total economy will provide much more resources in its foreign policy arsenal, allowing the country to increase its influence globally and compete with China on the economic front, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said.

In an exclusive interview with PTI, Jaishankar stated that India, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, has focused on improving domestic manufacturing in the previous ten years after neglecting the sector prior to 2014, which caused many challenges for the country.

He also suggested that the previous lack of focus on the manufacturing sector is linked to the upward trajectory in India-China trade, notwithstanding New Delhi's position that normalization of relations with Beijing is contingent on resolving the eastern Ladakh border dispute.

"We need to be confident. I am clear that international politics, international relations are competitive. I have a neighbour like China. I have to learn to compete," he said.

"By my complaining, China is not going to stop doing things. If I do not build up my strength at home, our foreign policy will be as good as our domestic policy," Jaishankar said.

"It is a function of our domestic policy that if I can actually build up my economy, if I can build up my manufacturing, if I can create the kind of capabilities which today I am trying to do, I think you are going to find the foreign policy has much more resources and much more tool in its toolkit to actually influence the world," he added.