EAM Jaishankar warns West will be ‘net losers’ if skilled immigration is restricted

NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has warned that countries such as the United States and those in Europe could undermine their own interests and end up being “net losers” if they place excessive curbs on immigration and hinder the movement of skilled workers.

Speaking at India’s World Annual Conclave 2025 in New Delhi on Wednesday, Jaishankar took a question on the rising political and social backlash against immigration in several nations and argued that the debate is often misplaced.

“A lot of these are issues which they have to resolve because, in many cases. The actual crisis has nothing to do with the mobility of the incoming workforce”, he said. He maintained that many of the current concerns in Western nations are linked to policy decisions made over decades rather than the presence of foreign professionals.

EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, “A lot of these are issues which they have to resolve because, in many cases, the actual crisis has nothing to do with the mobility of the incoming workforce. If there are concerns, let us say, in the US or in Europe, it is because they very consciously… pic.twitter.com/qBp2T4txbw

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“If there are concerns, let us say, in the United States or in Europe, it is because they very consciously and deliberately, over the last two decades, allowed their businesses to relocate. It was their choice and strategy. They have to find ways of fixing it, and many of them are,” the External Affairs Minister said.

Jaishankar emphasised the importance of communicating the shared benefits of allowing talent to move freely between countries. “The part which concerns us is to convince them that mobility, the use of talent across boundaries, is to our mutual benefit. That they would be net losers if they actually erected too many roadblocks to the flow of talent,” he said.

With economies shifting toward advanced manufacturing, he said the need for skilled professionals will only increase and domestic systems alone will not be able to meet those demands.

“As we move into an era of advanced manufacturing, we will need more talent, not less, and talent cannot be developed organically at a high rate. There is a certain structural impediment out there. In their own societies, you can see the tension,” he said.

Jaishankar expressed confidence that Western countries will eventually find ways to balance political pressures with economic reality. “They will probably reach some modus vivendi there”, he said. (ANI)