Panaji [Goa], May 5 (ANI): Amid a freeze in India-Pakistan ties over Islamabad’s support to cross-border terrorism, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said the “victims of terrorism do not sit together with perpetrators of terrorism”. Addressing a press conference after a meeting of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers, Jaishankar slammed Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari‘s “weaponising terrorism” remarks.
“Victims of terrorism do not sit together with perpetrators of terrorism to discuss terrorism. Victims of terrorism defend themselves, counter acts of terrorism, they call it out, they legitimise it and that is exactly what is happening. To come here and preach these hypocritical words as though we are on the same boat,” he said. He was answering questions on India-Pakistan ties including a question from a Pakistani journalist.
Answering a question about the terror incident in Jammu and Kashmir on Friday in which five soldiers lost their lives, Jaishankar said there was a shared feeling of outrage. “They are committing acts of terrorism. I don’t want to jump the gun on what happened today but we are all feeling equally outraged. On this matter, the terrorism matter, I would say that Pakistan’s credibility is depleting faster than even its Forex reserves,” Jaishankar said.
The menace of terrorism surfaced again in Jammu and Kashmir on Friday with the Army engaged in an encounter with Pakistan-backed terrorists in the Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir. The incident took place on a day Bilawal Bhutto was in Goa to take part in the SCO meet. Five soldiers lost their lives in the anti-terror operation in the Kandi area of Rajouri on Thursday.
Answering a question related to bilateral talks, Jaishankar said Bilawal Bhutto came as Foreign Minister of an SCO Member State. “That is part of multilateral diplomacy. Don’t see it as anything more than that. I think that nothing from what he said or what I heard he said deserves for this to be treated more than that…As a promoter, justifier and I am sorry to say, spokesperson of a terrorism industry which is the mainstay of Pakistan, his positions were called out and they were countered, including at the SCO meeting,” he said.
India has consistently raised the issue of Pakistan’s continued support to cross-border terrorism and terrorist infiltration. It has said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir have borne the brunt of this terrorism campaign for decades and continue to do so. Answering a query related to China-Pakistan-Economic Corridor (CPEC), Jaishankar said connectivity cannot violate territorial integrity and sovereignty. “Let me come to the specifics, on the CPEC, the so-called corridor, I think it was made very clear, not once but twice in the SCO meeting that connectivity is good for progress, but connectivity cannot violate territorial integrity and sovereignty. This has been our long-standing position, nobody should have any doubt about it and I assure those who are in the room today had no doubt about it, I made sure of that,” Jaishankar said.
He also brushed aside Pakistan’s objections to India hosting G20 tourism working group meeting in Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir in May. “I don’t think there is a G20 issue to debate with anybody, certainly not with a country which is nothing to do with G20. Jammu and Kashmir was, is, will always be a part of India. The G20 meetings are held in all the Indian states and Union Territories, so it is completely natural that it is held there,” Jaishankar said.
In his remarks at the SCO meeting, Bilawal Bhutto said terrorism should be “weaponised” for diplomatic point scoring Bhutto said terrorism continues to threaten global security and that collective security is a joint responsibility. “Let’s not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring,” he said. India has said that talks and terror cannot go together and it is for Pakistan to create a conducive atmosphere for bilateral talks. (ANI)
Pakistan credibility is depleting faster than its forex reserve: EAM slams Pak FM Bhutto in Goa
Panaji (Goa) [India], May 5 (ANI): External Affairs S Jaishankar on Friday took a dig at Pakistan’s economic condition amid its depleting forex reserves. Slamming Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari‘s comments on terrorism, he said, “Pakistan’s credibility is depleting faster than even its Forex reserves,” at a media briefing by the Presidency after SCO Council of Foreign Ministers.
“They (Pakistan) are committing acts of terrorism. I don’t want to jump the gun on what happened today, but we all feel equally outraged. On this matter, the terrorism matter, I would say that Pakistan’s credibility is depleting faster than even its Forex reserves,” Jaishankar said.
Adding further, EAM said Pakistan has nothing to do with G20 and Srinagar. “I said they (Pakistan) have nothing to do with G20. I will also say that they have nothing to do with Srinagar. There is only one issue to discuss on Kashmir which is when does Pakistan vacate its illegal occupation of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir,” the EAM added.
On a question on abrogation of Article 370, EAM Dr S Jaishankar phrased, “…wake up and smell the coffee. 370 is history. The sooner people realise it, the better it is.” Over the visit of Pakistan Foreign Minister Bhutto to Goa for the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa, EAM slammed his neighbouring counterpart, saying, “He came here as the Foreign Minister of an SCO Member State. That is part of multilateral diplomacy. Don’t see it as anything more than that. I think that nothing from what he said or what I heard he said deserves for this to be treated more than that.” (ANI)
“Somebody says you are weaponizing terrorism…they think terrorism is legitimate”: Jaishankar slams Bilawal Bhutto
New Delhi [India], May 5 (ANI): Lambasting Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for his “weaponising terrorism” remarks, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that it means “they think terrorism is legitimate” and that India is politically, diplomatically exposing Pakistan before the world as it is a victim of cross-border terrorism. Jaishankar, who addressed a press conference after the meeting of SCO Foreign Ministers, said India is defending itself against terrorism.
“The weaponization. It’s a very interesting statement because it unconsciously reveals a mindset. What does weaponizing something mean? It means that the activity is legitimate and somebody is weaponizing it. So you say you are weaponizing trade, you are weaponizing technology. Somebody says you are weaponizing terrorism, that means they think terrorism is legitimate, that we should not weaponize it. That is normal,” said Jaishankar.
He was responding to Bilawal Bhutto’s remarks at the SCO meet on not getting “caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring,” “Okay, now what are we doing? We are countering ourselves. Countering terrorism? We are defending ourselves. We are calling it out. We are exposing it… So, to me, we are not scoring diplomatic points. We are politically, diplomatically, exposing Pakistan before the world. And as a victim of terrorism, I’m completely entitled to do so,” Jaishankar said.
He said India has every right to defend itself from cross-border terrorism.
“What do you mean we should not weaponize terrorism? That means, as a victim, I’m supposed to put up with it. So you not only commit terrorism, but you say, oh, please, do not even speak about it? Come on. So to me, that sentence, it spoke so much about a mindset of that country that you can all see for yourselves,” he added.
Jaishankar said Pakistan is a “spokesperson of the terrorism industry”. He said Bilawal Bhutto came to India for SCO meeting. “That is part of multilateral diplomacy. Don’t see it as anything more than that. I think that nothing from what he said or what I heard he said deserves this to be treated more than that…As a promoter, justifier and I am sorry to say, spokesperson of a terrorism industry which is the mainstay of Pakistan, his positions were called out and they were countered, including at the SCO meeting,” he said.
India has consistently raised the issue of Pakistan’s continued support to cross-border terrorism and terrorist infiltration. It has said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir have borne the brunt of this terrorism campaign for decades and continue to do so. In his remarks at the SCO meeting, Bilawal Bhutto said terrorism continues to threaten global security and that collective security is joint responsibility. “Let’s not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring,” he said.
India has said that talks and terror cannot go together and it is for Pakistan to create conducive atmosphere for bilateral talks. (ANI)
