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BoraTas

Captain
Registered Member

taxiya

Brigadier
Registered Member
A very plain welcome party for any foreign minister.

Nevertheless, when Anthony Blinken arrived, the Indian welcome party wasn't much of an improvement either:

Maybe India is on a budget with its G20 event? So no red carpet welcomes for foreign ministers.
This is the most plain welcoming of a foreign minister that I have seen, and that's coming from a powerful country that's China.

Is India being petty or am I overthinking things.


I think it is normal protocol. Only head of state or head of government have red carpet and well-defined to-dos. A minister no matter how important is essentially a bureaucrat. Their visit is only "working" visit that has no diplomatic procedure to follow. Usually minister would be welcomed at the airport by an official half-rank lower which is like assistant or deputy minister. This is what I observed from Chinese practice broadcasted by CCTV. In cases of China and US, there were an Indian official (presumably from Indian F Ministry) at the airport besides a police officer responsible for security, a guy looks like chauffeur and the ambassadors.

Of course, if the two countries are in good relationship and the host is trying to make a show, the welcoming party may be more elevated and the receiving minister would present at the airport, but this is not common.

However, the Germany FM had no Indian officials from their foreign ministry. That is unusual IMO.
 

Biscuits

Major
Registered Member
I think it is normal protocol. Only head of state or head of government have red carpet and well-defined to-dos. A minister no matter how important is essentially a bureaucrat. Their visit is only "working" visit that has no diplomatic procedure to follow. Usually minister would be welcomed at the airport by an official half-rank lower which is like assistant or deputy minister. This is what I observed from Chinese practice broadcasted by CCTV. In cases of China and US, there were an Indian official (presumably from Indian F Ministry) at the airport besides a police officer responsible for security, a guy looks like chauffeur and the ambassadors.

Of course, if the two countries are in good relationship and the host is trying to make a show, the welcoming party may be more elevated and the receiving minister would present at the airport, but this is not common.

However, the Germany FM had no Indian officials from their foreign ministry. That is very low.
The Indian logic might be:

American and Chinese officials = representatives of near-peer powers to the Indian singularity power = recieve them with a slightly lower rank official

German official = colonial administrator of a near-peer power = unworthy of meeting any official of the greatest superpower.
 
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