Mumbai: Finnish President Alexander Stubb has asserted that the global trajectory is shifting significantly towards New Delhi, declaring that “the future is Indian” due to the country’s demographic and economic strength. Speaking during an interview with ANI, the President offered a bold prediction for the coming decade, stating, “First of all, I think the future is Indian. And I don’t say this only because I’m in India and I’m not trying to be openly diplomatic. I think demography, economy and history speak in your favour”.
The President described his high-level engagement with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “wonderful”, following a three-hour meeting that underscored the deepening ties between Finland and India during his ongoing state visit. “It has been wonderful. I felt very warmly welcomed. I spent three hours with PM Modi and then spoke at the Raisina Dialogue and had meetings with political leaders”, he noted.
Reflecting on the country’s rapid transformation since his previous trip, he remarked, “Last time I was here was in 2013. Now, just seeing the development, the infrastructure, the roads and the buildings, it is always nice to be back in India”. Addressing the strategic importance of bilateral agreements, the President highlighted the mutual benefits of newly signed protocols.
“I think these MoUs will help us have better exchanges when it comes to labour mobility. I think it is going to be a two-way street”, he said. During his visit to Mumbai, President Stubb also paid a sombre tribute to the victims of the 26/11 attacks at the Taj Palace Hotel. “Terrorism is always a menace everywhere. The attacks on 26 November 2008 were horrific. It was my great honour to pay respects to the victims”, the Finnish President stated.
Discussing India’s role in a shifting global landscape, he explained that the current global transition necessitates a move away from outdated power structures. “A world order changes ever so often. And I think we’re now seeing a transition of the world order. I would prefer it to be multilateral in other national institutions, rules and norms, not multipolar, which for me is often about pure interests, deals and transactions. Reality is probably going to be somewhere in between”, he added.
The Finnish President urged Western nations to recognise India’s leadership. “I am happy that the largest democracy in the world, India, is taking the lead. And my argument to my Western friends is that if we want to save multilateralism, we’re going to have to give agency, in other words power, a seat around the table to the countries that matter today”, he said. He further argued that international bodies must reflect the current era rather than the post-war period of 1945.
“We don’t live in a world of 1945, so the institutions should not reflect that either. They should reflect the world of 2026. That’s why I have called, for instance, for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council for India,” he stated. Drawing from his own scholarship on the subject, Stubb maintained that India’s leadership is pivotal for the future of the international community. “I wrote a book about it called The Triangle of Power, where I really think that the Global South is going to decide where we’re going to go, and India leads it”, the Finnish President asserted.
(With Inputs from ANI)
