Jaishankar Rejects Pakistan's Terrorism Defence at UN General Assembly
At the 81st UN General Assembly, EAM S Jaishankar rejected Pakistan's attempts to normalise terrorism, vowing India will exercise its right to defend itself.
India pushed back sharply at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday, with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar rejecting what he described as an attempt by a "serial practitioner of terrorism" to rewrite facts before the world body.
Addressing the General Debate of the high-level 81st session, Mr Jaishankar said the previous day's speech had sought to "normalise terrorism, and claim immunity from its consequences." He did not name Pakistan or its Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, who had spoken on Friday.
"That will not stand," the minister asserted, adding that India's right to defend itself against terrorism would be exercised. Friendship and goodwill, he said, cannot coexist with terrorism, and understandings built on such a premise would naturally be called into question. It was for the perpetrator of terrorism to mend its ways, he added.
Mr Jaishankar told world leaders that terrorism remains a persistent threat to peace, and that state sponsorship with a cross-border purpose amounts to a direct affront to the global order. He called for governments indulging in such practices to be held accountable, urging that the zero-tolerance approach to terrorism not be diluted and that its financial dimensions be exposed and countered.
In his roughly 23-minute address, Mr Sharif had credited U.S. President Donald Trump for what he called a timely intervention in the 2025 conflict with India. He also raised the issue of Kashmir, saying a just and fair solution was needed to ensure South Asia never again approaches the precipice it reached in 2025.