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India recognises that enduring conflicts have the potential to disrupt food security and threaten energy flows, and, therefore, it welcomes the Gaza peace initiative by U.S. President Donald Trump and wishes an early end to the conflict in Ukraine, said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Monday (October 27, 2025). Speaking at the 20th East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur where he led the Indian delegation, Mr. Jaishankar spoke in favour of deepening maritime connections in the ASEAN region and said the world needs “serious” conversations about “multipolarity”.
“We are also witnessing conflicts that have significant repercussions, near and far. Deep human suffering apart, they undermine food security, threaten energy flows and disrupt trade. India, therefore, welcomes the Gaza peace plan. We also seek an early end to the conflict in Ukraine,” said Mr. Jaishankar.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Jaishankar met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio as India-U.S. relations continue to remain uneasy after President Donald Trump imposed penalty tariffs on India because of India buying Russian crude. Mr. Trump has been calling on major buyers of Russian crude to cut down on Russian supplies to force President Putin make concessions in the war in Ukraine.
On his way to Kuala Lumpur where he participated in talks with Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday, President Trump said India will cut Russian crude import “completely”. Indian officials, meanwhile, have reiterated that India will “broadbase” sourcing of energy to meet domestic requirements.
Mr. Jaishankar, on his part, did not specifically refer to the challenges that India is facing because of President Trump’s campaign to cut down Russian energy exports but pointed at “reliability of supply chains and access to markets” as an area of “growing concerns”. “Energy trade is increasingly constricted, with resulting market distortions. Principles are applied selectively and what is preached is not necessarily practiced,” said Mr. Jaishankar supporting “adjustments” and “resilient solutions”.
“Multipolarity is not just here to stay but to grow. All these warrant serious global conversations,” said Mr. Jaishankar. He expressed India’s commitment to enhance maritime cooperation in the ASEAN region in line with the “ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific” and the 1982 UNCLOS that calls for freedom of navigation in the maritime domain.
Mr. Jaishankar also announced that India intends to host the 7th East Asia Summit Conference on Maritime Security Cooperation. He reminded that India was a “first responder” during the March earthquake that hit Myanmar and described the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway as a project in which both India and ASEAN region have “stakes”. Mr. Jaishankar also touched upon terrorism and said, “Our right of defence against terrorism can never be compromised.”
English (US) ·