Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reiterated on Tuesday that his government does not intend to “fuel” the crisis with India, which has asked Ottawa to send back around forty of its diplomats stationed in India, the Financial Times reports, citing sources close to the matter.
At least 61 Canadian diplomats are currently stationed in India, but 41 of them must leave the country by October 10, the Indian government has demanded.
India and Canada are in the middle of a diplomatic crisis. Tensions began on September 18 when Prime Minister Trudeau told the House of Commons that there were “credible allegations” linking the Indian government to the murder of a Canadian-born citizen, Sikh Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India’s Foreign Ministry responded the same day by calling Mr. Trudeau’s allegations absurd.
The next day, Justin Trudeau said he did not want any escalation with India and called on the Indian government to take the issue very seriously.
On Tuesday, Mr. Trudeau said he was taking this diplomatic crisis “extremely seriously” while reiterating that his government continues to “work with the Indian government in a responsible and constructive manner.” “. “We are not seeking escalation,” he added.
However, the prime minister did not say whether Canada would again expel Indian diplomats in retaliation for India’s decision. However, he reiterated the importance of keeping Canadian diplomats on Indian territory to help Canadians in that country and work to improve Canada-India relations.
It is a difficult situation we are in with the Indian government, but we still have a lot of work to do on the ground […] to advance our relationships. We remain steadfast.
“We don’t want to inflame the situation, but we want to stay grounded,” he added.
Not the first expulsions of diplomats
Canada had already expelled a high-ranking Indian diplomat, Pavan Kumar Rai, last September.
The Indian government responded by expelling a senior Canadian diplomat who was stationed in India.
On September 21, the Indian government announced that it would suspend processing visa applications from Canadian citizens.
With information from Portal and Financial Times