Jaishankar Arrives In Rwanda For The 26th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM)

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday met his counterparts from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Canada, Tanzania, and Rwanda on the sidelines of the Commonwealth summit beginning in Rwanda, on Friday. Jaishankar is on a four-day visit to Rwanda, East Africa, to attend the 26th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). He will be representing Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the summit of the 54-nation bloc on June 24-25.

 "Good to catch up with colleagues on @CHOGM2022 sidelines. Here with FM of Tanzania Liberata Mulamula, FM of Canada @melaniejoly, FM G. L. Peiris of Sri Lanka, and FM Dr. AK Abdul Momen of Bangladesh," Jaishankar tweeted as he attended the pre-CHOGM foreign ministers' meeting.

 Jaishankar held a bilateral meeting with Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly and exchanged views on international issues, including the Commonwealth, Ukraine conflict, and the Indo-Pacific. "An open & productive conversation with Canadian FM @melaniejoly. Agreed to work more closely to advance our important bilateral relationship. Exchanged views on international issues including the Commonwealth, Ukraine conflict & the Indo-Pacific. Look forward to being in touch," Jaishankar tweeted.

Earlier he held talks with his Rwandan counterpart Vincent Biruta during which they discussed the agenda of the Commonwealth summit beginning Friday and exchanged perspectives on regional developments.  "Welcomed the Center of Engineering constructed with Indian support. India will continue to provide vaccines in the global fight against the pandemic," Jaishankar tweeted.

"Began the day by meeting my host counterpart FM @Vbiruta of Rwanda. Reviewed our bilateral cooperation and follow-up on PM @narendramodi's 2018 visit. Discussed the Commonwealth agenda and wished Rwanda a successful Summit. Exchanged perspectives on regional developments," Jaishankar tweeted on Thursday. The theme of the 26th CHOGM Summit is: "Delivering a Common Future: Connecting, Innovating, Transforming".

The CHOGM had earlier been postponed twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On Wednesday, Jaishankar met Kenya's Cabinet Secretary of Foreign Affairs Raychelle Omamo and discussed the impact of the conflict in Ukraine and bilateral ties. "So nice to meet my friend Raychelle Omamo of Kenya. Our discussions focused on the impact of the Ukraine conflict on food, fuel, and fertilizer security for the Global South," Jaishankar tweeted.

The leaders of the Commonwealth member states are scheduled to deliberate on issues of contemporary relevance, including global challenges like climate change, food security, and health issues, and are likely to adopt a number of documents including the Kigali declaration on child care and protection reform, a declaration on sustainable urbanization and commonwealth living lands charter.