Help Resolving Ukraine-Russia conflict can make Modi "global statesman" - says Fareed Zakaria

In a conversation with India Today TV, well known geopolitical expert Fareed Zakaria suggested that mediating the Russia-Ukraine war is PM Narendra Modi's "great opportunity to be a global statesman". 

Namo with all BJP stalwarts - Advani, Vajpayee, M M Joshi, Mrs Schindia

Sickular brigade cannot be happy at all. Wait for tweets and elaborate statements from Jairam Ramesh and Pawan Khera. If those do not satisfy you, Rahul Gandhi may come up with his Jalebi-factory wisecracks !!  

But look at what US-based expert Zakaria says.  

"The war in Ukraine is frozen...There are very few parties who have the credibility to talk to both sides... If Prime Minister Modi were to propose some kind of situation where he acts as an intermediary, I think he could play a very constructive role." he said.

He also stated: "This is Modi's great opportunity to be a global statesman, should he want it," Zakaria concluded, pointing to the Indian leader's diplomatic skills and platform as key assets in the pursuit of peace." 

As if adding insult to injuries, Zakaria made the statement to a well known Modi-bashing scribe !  

Zakaria acknowledged that while India traditionally stays neutral in foreign policy matters, it has the capacity to play a "very viable and constructive role" if it chooses.

He also mentioned that few world leaders possess the credibility to communicate effectively with both Russia and Ukraine, citing only two: Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Modi.

On West Asia crisis:

"What Israel is trying to do is to end this dynamic of constant rocket firing into northern Israel (by Iranian proxy outfits). So they're pushing back and they're now beginning to ask themselves whether they should push back against Iran itself," Zakaria said.  

"This is why I say it's the moment of maximum danger, because now you have the real possibility of direct escalation between Israel and Iran. Iran may not be a very powerful country, but it's not a militia like Hezbollah either. This is an eighty-million strong country and one of the world's largest petroleum exporters," Zakaria said, referring to Iran's ballistic missile attack on Israel last week.

Talking about the US's role in the conflict, which has been Israel's biggest backer in the region, Zakaria said that Washington is trying to convince Israel to strike Iran but in a way that is not "dangerously escalatory".

"This means don't hit the nuclear sites (of Iran) and oil refineries," he explained. Zakaria called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu one of the "most shrewd players" in the world, saying he would try to act with greater freedom in the region in the next 30 days leveraging the US Presidential elections.

When asked if the US will directly enter the fight if Israel's growing conflict with Iran escalates into a war, Zakaria said, "My guess is the US will try to stay out except in the sense that it will provide defensive technology and defensive help to Israel. 

If Iranian rockets rain over Israeli cities, the US will try to interdict them. But I don't think the US will get directly involved."

ends