The visiting President of Paraguay, Santiago Peña Palacios, has mentioned he’s making an attempt to “construct bridges” between Latin America and India, identical to what Prime Minister Narendra Modi is doing.
In an unique interview with The Indian Specific in Delhi, Peña, who met Modi Monday, condemned the Pahalgam terror assault and expressed help for India’s proper to defend its folks. Edited excerpts:
That is your first go to to India as President of Paraguay, the second ever Presidential go to from Paraguay. How do you view India-Paraguay relations as we speak?
This isn’t the primary time, and won’t be the final time that the world resides in turbulent instances. I feel that what we wish to obtain from Paraguay is similar to what India needs to realize, making an attempt to protect financial and navy dominance by means of energy…making an attempt to grow to be extra related on the world stage, by means of collaboration, by means of multilateralism.
We, in Paraguay, at all times confer with ourselves because the island surrounded by land.
Paraguay was a rustic that was very remoted, and never solely in our area, however worldwide. That is one thing that has modified…Throughout my presidency, I’ve spent plenty of time constructing bridges…I’m coming to New Delhi once more to construct a bridge between India and South America. If I’ve to say in a single line, I feel that because the drums of warfare get louder and louder, the hornets of peace must be nonetheless louder.
What are the areas of co-operation you mentioned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi…how was your chemistry?
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The chemistry was nice. I had an opportunity to fulfill him personally in the course of the G20 leaders’ summit in Brazil final yr…Right here in Delhi, he was form, and I conveyed that India has contributed a lot, not solely to the world stage, however to your complete civilization. I see India not as a rustic, not as a continent, however extra as a civilization.
There’s a lot knowledge in Indian tradition, and I say that what India has been capable of obtain, and really actually, what I see Prime Minister Modi has been capable of construct — it’s precisely what I would like — is constructing bridges. I’m making an attempt to construct bridges in Latin America, amongst all of the nations in Latin America.
We had been, 5 centuries in the past, the place that was uniting the South American area after we had been below the colony of the Spanish crown, and 70 cities in South America had been based from expeditions that led from our personal capital. So we’ve got the identical feeling that we wish to be the centre of integration. We’re the center of South America. We wish to unite the continent. So, in that regard, for me, coming here’s a essential journey of discovering or constructing bridges between our two areas.
What are the precise areas of cooperation?
India has rather a lot to supply by way of expertise, what India has finished by way of digitalization is nice, and we predict that Paraguay may very well be an important associate in exploring these new applied sciences and testing these applied sciences in Latin America.
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We additionally suppose that there’s a nice space of collaboration in agricultural manufacturing, meals manufacturing. Paraguay is a powerhouse. We’re one of many meals baskets of the world. We produce meals for greater than 100 million folks, and we’re solely 6 million and we all know that if we will mix agri-tech with our technique of manufacturing, we will develop agricultural manufacturing.
Pharmaceutical is one thing that India has performed a significant worldwide function, and Paraguay may very well be an important platform for manufacturing. One of many benefits of Paraguay is being in the course of South America.
You will have entry to a 400-million market, which is Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, all of those nations surrounding us, and Paraguay has gained a place of being essentially the most aggressive market (with) macro stability, political stability, financial progress, ease of doing enterprise and a really pro-business atmosphere.
India confronted a terror assault in Kashmir in April this yr adopted by 4 days of hostilities between India and Pakistan. How do you view these developments?
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We condemned the terrorist assaults instantly…we’ve got named Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist organizations, and the identical with the Iranian nationwide guard as a terrorist group. These are very sturdy stances. So our place is that solely these nations which have suffered the results of the warfare know the way troublesome it’s. We (deeply) sympathize with India. We perceive that India has needed to face hostilities within the area for a very long time. If it was not China up to now, it was Pakistan up to now, and now once more. And, after all, India deserves all of the rights to defend its nation and its folks, and we’re going to help that.
You attended US President Donald Trump’s inauguration in Washington DC. What’s your view of the present administration?
Paraguay has been a superb good friend of the US eternally…whoever was within the Oval Workplace, we’ve got maintained superb relations. However the fact is that the relations between the White Home and Latin America have been extra shut in the course of the Republican administrations than Democrats.
So, after all, President Biden being a Democrat, but in addition an individual who was not very eager in participating in a world agenda usually, but in addition with Latin America…with the arrival of President Trump, it turned evident that the relations had been going to enhance. We really feel very optimistic now.
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How do you view Trump’s imposition of tariffs, resulting in a commerce warfare of kinds?
We perceive that the Trump administration needs to reset worldwide commerce. We’ve got a really sturdy view about multilateralism. We imagine that multilateralism is the very best factor, however we predict that the system has been failing for fairly a while now, and must be reset. Within the technique of resetting, there will probably be plenty of turbulence, and that is what we’re seeing.
Loads of robust negotiations are occurring, and trade of views with completely different nations are happening proper now. However ultimately, I’ve little question that widespread sense will prevail and worldwide commerce will resume and with ties which can be going to be stronger.
You will have been a scholar of Columbia College. How do you view the Trump administration’s actions towards college college students…
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I feel and I converse, after all, as a former overseas scholar within the US, but in addition I converse as a father of a younger girl who’s finding out within the US. My daughter is a freshman in Columbia College, and I’ve been following very intently what occurred, significantly after the horrible October 7 terror assaults, and the battle between Israel and Hamas. And once more, I feel that within the title of preserving peace and tolerance, many protests went past the restrict and put many overseas college students in danger. So this is a matter that the US authorities has been elevating.
Anti-Semitism is an actual concern. My understanding is that the US administration has been elevating this subject and has been asking, for the reason that starting, for cooperation from many establishments in addressing these delicate points. Once more, talking as a former overseas scholar who went to the US to check, nothing greater than research, and I see that, in lots of of those establishments, many of those college students go there after requesting for a visa to check, however then they aren’t spending their time in libraries or lecture rooms. They’re principally spending their time doing protests on the streets or campuses. And that was not the unique motive why they determined to go or why the US determined to grant the visa.
The visa to check within the US is just not a proper, it’s a privilege that the US offers to return and research of their universities. And I’ve little question that whoever needs to check there must abide by the legislation, in the identical approach, if a Paraguayan comes to check right here in India, he should abide by the Indian guidelines and never come right here to disturb the group.
Simply days in the past, Ukraine launched an enormous aerial strike on Russia utilizing drones. How do you see this and what does it imply for peace within the area?
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We’ve got been a really sturdy voice for the reason that starting of the Russia and Ukraine battle. Paraguay was essentially the most developed nation within the 1800s, and we needed to face a warfare of extermination. Three nations surrounded us and declared warfare in 1864, so we suffered the results of invasion. We suffered the results of a warfare of extermination. So we raised our voice in Ukraine’s defence. We condemned the assault from Russia, and our place is at all times to search for peace. However within the pursuit of peace, we perceive the best to defend.
With the arrival of President Trump, we had been very optimistic that this may very well be the start of the top of the battle, and we’ve got seen the big effort that he has put in assembly with President (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy, in speaking to President (Vladimir) Putin a number of instances. And we’re very unhappy that these conversations will not be bringing peace to the area. So after all, we’re completely not proud of what is occurring, the escalation that we’re seeing, and we’ve got little question that Russia will react to those current assaults. We’re not very glad. We hope that peace may very well be achieved and the talks may resume as quickly as attainable.
As a 46-year-old president of a rustic, what’s your message to youthful folks?
With social media, there’s a lot info flowing round and far of this info sends fallacious messages, encourages antagonism, and hate more often than not. My message is that the world is a lot better than what you see on social media.
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I encourage folks to exit, to interact, to become involved. I used to be not educated as a politician. I made a decision to enter politics in pursuing a higher and a brighter future for my nation. So my request for the youth is to exit to pursue a greater future. Don’t get slowed down with the negativity that you just at all times see on social media. I can guarantee you that as with all different occasion within the historical past of humankind, we’re going to not solely have the ability to persevere, however we’re going to prevail. I’ve little question that we’re going to be very profitable in overcoming the challenges that this period is placing on us.