Diplomatic standoff won’t affect IPACC: Top Army officer

“It does not impact us,” he said, adding that India has always continued to engage neighbours diplomatically and militarily even with those it has had a standoff with. “I am referring directly to China here. Our diplomatic and military efforts with Canada will continue to be there and as part of IPACC, they will form an important partner in this journey,” he said.

The Canadian deputy Army chief will head the Canadian delegation at the 13th IPACC scheduled from September 25 to 27. Along with IPACC, the 47th Indo Pacific Armies Management Seminar (IPAMS) and the Senior Enlisted Leaders Forum will also be held at the same time.

A photograph of Hardeep Singh Nijjar is seen on a banner outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara Sahib in Surrey, British Columbia, on Monday, Sept. 18, 2023. (Photo: AP)

The diplomatic row between India and Canada began Tuesday as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suggested a potential link between the Indian government and the killing of a Khalistan separatist earlier this year. India has denied the allegations.

The IPACC started in 1999 as a biennial event and is attended by Army Chiefs of countries of the Indo-Pacific region, to discuss issues of mutual interest.  Around 15 Army Chiefs and delegations from 22 countries will attend this event in Delhi, even as officials said the list is still being finalised as confirmation from some countries is awaited. Defence attaches of several countries were present at the curtain raiser on Wednesday including Col Todd Braithwaite from Canada.

In his keynote address at the curtain raiser, Vice Chief of Army Lieutenant General MV Suchindra Kumar said that since Independence, the Indian Armed Forces, particularly the Army, have made significant contributions in promoting peace and stability in the region.