EAM S Jaishankar to meet US Secy Antony Blinken today; discussion on India-Canada row likely

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will meet US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington today, amid the diplomatic standoff with Canada over the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil in June this year.

Jaishankar-Blinken meet: What to expect?

While the agenda of the meeting has not been disclosed, the latest diplomatic crisis between two of America's friends, its traditional ally Canada and India, is expected to come up prominently during the talks.

"I don't want to preview the conversations he (Blinken) will have in that meeting (with Jaishankar) , but as we've made clear, we've raised this; we have engaged with our Indian counterparts on this and encouraged them to cooperate with the Canadian investigation, and we continue to encourage them to cooperate," State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said, as per news agency PTI.

Miller also stated that the India-Canada diplomatic row did not come up for discussion in New York during the Quad ministerial meet last week that involved foreign ministers of the US, India, Japan and Australia.

"It was a meeting of a number of countries and it did not come up in that meeting. But we have engaged with our Indian counterparts on this issue and urged them to fully cooperate with the Canadian investigation," the State Department spokesperson said.

India-Canada row: Here's what's happening

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has alleged that the Indian government was behind the killing of Nijjar, 45, outside a gurdwara in Surrey in British Columbia on June 18. India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020.

However, India has categorically rejected Canada's allegations, calling them "baseless" and "absurd". India has also asked Canada to crack down on terrorists and anti-India elements operating from its soil and suspended visa services for Canadians.

Amid strained ties, India issued an advisory for its citizens and those who are travelling to Canada to exercise "utmost caution in view of growing anti-India activities and politically-condoned hate crimes and criminal violence" in the country.

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