Try to be good neighbor: Jaishankar tells Pakistan at UNSC
Chiding Pakistan at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday termed it an epicenter of terrorism that needs to clean up its act and be a good neighbor. He recalled Hillary Clinton's words on her visit to Pakistan, where she said that if one keeps snakes in their backyard, they can't expect them to bite only their neighbors.
Why does this story matter?
- A day prior to this, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto raised the Kashmir issue at the UNSC, on which Jaishankar said the country has no authority to "sermonize" on the issue as it hosted Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.
- In 2001, terrorist groups Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)—based out of Pakistan—attacked the New Delhi Parliament complex, opened fire, and killed nine individuals.
Established terror networks still alive in South Asia: Jaishankar
Chairing a counter-terrorism meeting, India's signature event at the UN, he said Pakistan's old habits and established terror networks are still alive in South Asia. In a veiled attack on China, he called out the double standards in fighting terrorism and said tactical compromises on the issue were unaffordable. He highlighted that evidence-based proposals to ban terrorists were put on hold without appropriate reason.
'World isn't stupid, increasingly calling out those indulging in terrorism'
Jaishankar underlined 4 major challenges to fighting terrorism
He identified four major challenges to counterterrorism, the first of which is terror financing and state culpability. The second is the integrity and accountability of the multilateral counterterror mechanisms. The third is double standards in fighting terrorism, leading to politicization. The fourth challenge, which would also be the next frontier in the battle, is the misuse of emerging technologies by terrorists.
Threat became serious with expansion of terror outfits: Jaishankar
He further said that terrorism knew no border, nationality, or race and was an existential threat to international peace and security. He said the threat of terrorism became more serious with the expansion of Al-Qaeda, Da'esh, Boko Haram, and Al-Shabaab. He also mentioned lone wolf attacks influenced by online radicalism. Jaishankar announced India's candidature for the non-permanent seat in the UNSC for 2028-29.
