Amid heightened tensions between India and Canada, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday, September 29, said that he had a discussion regarding the death of a Khalistani separatist with the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken a day earlier and that both came out of the meeting "better informed".

"I spoke to NSA Jake Sullivan and (US Secretary of State) Antony Blinken about Canada. They shared US views and assessments on this whole situation... I think hopefully we both came out of those meetings better informed."

Speaking at the Hudson Institute, Washington, DC, Jaishankar reiterated that the allegations put forth by Canada's leadership are not consistent with India's policies and has urged Canada to provide specific information regarding the matter.

"The Canadian PM made some allegations initially privately, and then publicly. And, our, response to him, both in private and public, what he was alleging was not consistent with our policy. And that if he had, if his government had anything relevant and specific they would like us to look into, we were open to looking at it. Now, that's where that conversation is at this point of time..." he said.

Khalistani terrorism has been a longstanding source of tension between India and Canada. India has expressed concerns about what it perceives as a permissive environment for terrorist elements within Canada. This issue has gained prominence recently, after Canada alleged India of having a role in the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the chief of the banned Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF), on June 18.

The situation escalated to the point where Indian diplomats in Canada have faced public intimidation and safety concerns. Consequently, India temporarily suspended visa operations in Canada to ensure the safety of its diplomatic staff.

"This has been an issue of great, friction for many years with Canada. But in the last few years, it has come back, very much into play, because of what we consider to be a very permissive Canadian attitude towards terrorists, extremist people who openly advocate violence. And they have been given operating space in Canada because of the compulsions of Canadian politics..." Jaishankar said.

"For us, it has certainly been a country where, organized crime from India, mixed with trafficking in people, mixed with secessionism, violence, terrorism. It's a very toxic combination of issues and people, who have found operating space there... Today, I'm actually in a situation where my diplomats are unsafe going to the embassy, or to the consulate in Canada. They are publicly intimidated. And that has actually compelled me to temporarily suspend even visa operations in Canada..." the minister added.

First Published:Sept 29, 2023 10:03 PM IST