Australia’s foreign minister said the country is closely monitoring developments.
New Delhi:
In its first response to the controversy over Canada’s claim that Indian officials played a role in the killing of a Khalistani terrorist, Australia has called the reports “concerning” and said it has raised the issue with its ” Indian counterparts’.
Australia is a member of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or Quad, which works with India, Japan and the United States. It is also part of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance with Canada, the US, the UK and New Zealand.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Canada’s parliament on Monday that his government had “credible allegations” linking the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June to “agents of the Government of India.” The next day, Trudeau said he had no intention of “provoking” India or “escalating” tension, but that he wanted New Delhi to treat Nijjar’s killing with “the utmost seriousness.”
The Indian government has dismissed the accusation as “absurd and motivated”.
In response to a reporter’s question about Mr. Trudeau’s claim, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said: “Look, these are reports, and I note that there are still investigations going on, but obviously these are reports and we are monitoring these developments closely with our partners, and we will continue to do so… Australia has raised these issues with our Indian counterparts, as you would expect us to do.
On whether Australia plans to raise the issue with Japan given the country is a member of the Quad, Ms Wong said, although she could not comment on what is being raised and what will be further raised, the country’s main position is that it believes the sovereignty of all countries and the rule of law should be respected.
Asked whether she was concerned about foreign interference from India in Australia, the minister said: “I think Australia is a robust democracy, and I think the Indian diaspora has a range of views, and you know, we have clearly made in relation to democratic debate in Australia that the peaceful expression of different views is an important part of Australian democracy, and I think most Australians would agree with that.”
Seeking details about how Canberra had shared its concerns with New Delhi and what information, if any, had been shared by Canada, Ms Wong declined to go into detail. “I just want to tell you that we have been closely monitoring these developments together with partners, that we will continue to do so, and I will confirm that we have raised our concerns with India. I’m not going to go into further detail about that.”
She also declined to reveal details about whether the topic was raised privately at the G20 summit in New Delhi earlier this month.
When asked about Sikh Indians being “at risk” in Australia, Ms Wong said: “I note that these allegations are still being investigated, so I would acknowledge that fact, but more broadly I would say this: we take the view as a government that Australian democracy is precious, that Australians of whatever persuasion are entitled to peaceful protest as a matter of principle and as a matter of law.
“And in all circumstances, we reflect that right in our public statements and in our private conversations with other governments. You would also know that as a Parliament we have made very clear statements, both legislative and policy, about the importance of Australian democracy not being influenced by external concerns,” she added.
Canada has deported a senior Indian diplomat who it says is the head of the Indian Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) in the country. India on Tuesday asked a senior Canadian diplomat to leave the country within five days.
In a strong denial of Mr. Trudeau’s allegations, the Indian Foreign Ministry had said: “Allegations of the Indian government’s involvement in any act of violence in Canada are absurd and motivated. Similar accusations were made by the Canadian Prime Minister to our Prime Minister. and were completely rejected.”
According to a report in The Washington Post, weeks before making the accusations, Canadian officials had sought public condemnation of Nijjar’s killing from their allies, including the United States, but were met with reluctance.
