United Nations, Sept 29: India has slammed Pakistan for responding to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s UN General Assembly remarks on terrorism, despite the neighbour not being named, describing Islamabad’s reaction as an admission of its “longstanding practice of cross-border terrorism”.During his address at the UNGA General Debate on Saturday, Jaishankar, without naming Pakistan, said, “Major international terrorist attacks are traced back to that one country.” Referring to a “neighbour that is an epicentre of global terrorism”, he said India has confronted the challenge of terrorism since independence.
Later in the evening, in its Right of Reply, the Pakistani delegate accused India of attempting to “malign Pakistan” with “malicious accusations” about terrorism, even though Jaishankar had not named the country in his address while talking about the scourge of terrorism.
The Pakistani delegate claimed that India’s allegations were a “deliberate attempt to repeat lies”.
Responding to Pakistan’s Right of Reply, India said it was “telling that a neighbour who was not named chose to nevertheless respond and admit their longstanding practice of cross-border terrorism”.
“Pakistan’s reputation speaks for itself. Its fingerprints are so visible in terrorism across so many geographies. It is a menace not only to its neighbours but to the entire world,” said Rentala Srinivas, Second Secretary in the Permanent Mission of India to the UN.
“No arguments or untruths can ever whitewash the crimes of terroristan!” Srinivas said, delivering India’s Right of Reply.
The Pakistani delegate again took the floor to respond, but Srinivas walked out of the hall while the Pakistani representative was speaking.
In his address, Jaishankar had urged the international community to unequivocally condemn nations that openly declare terrorism as state policy, where terror hubs operate on an industrial scale and terrorists are glorified publicly.
He emphasised the need to “choke” the financing of terrorism and sanction prominent terrorists, warning that “relentless pressure must be applied on the entire terrorism eco-system” and that those condoning terror sponsors “will find that it comes back to bite them”.
Without naming Pakistan, Jaishankar underlined that “UN’s designated lists of terrorists are replete with its nationals”.
Highlighting the murder of innocent tourists in Pahalgam in April as an example of “cross-border barbarism”, he asserted, “India exercised its right to defend its people against terrorism and brought its organisers and perpetrators to justice.