Rajnath Singh Arrives in China Ahead of SCO Defence Ministers’ Meet
India has consistently trashed Pakistan’s allegations about its involvement in Balochistan and said Islamabad must look within and stop backing terror instead of making wild allegations. India is not satisfied with the language of the joint document. There was no mention of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, there was mention of the incidents that happened in Pakistan, so India refused to sign the joint declaration, and there is no joint communique either,” a Defence Ministry source said.
Addressing the summit, the Defence Minister called upon SCO members to unite to eliminate terrorism for collective safety and security. He said the biggest challenges faced by the region are related to peace, security and trust deficit, with radicalisation, extremism and terrorism being the root cause of these problems.
“Peace and prosperity cannot co-exist with terrorism and proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction in the hands of non-state actors and terror groups. Dealing with these challenges requires decisive action. It is imperative that those who sponsor, nurture and utilise terrorism for their narrow and selfish ends must bear the consequences. Some countries use cross-border terrorism as an instrument of policy and provide shelter to terrorists. There should be no place for such double standards. SCO should not hesitate to criticise such nations,” Mr Singh, taking in a veiled swipe at Pakistan.
Referring to the Pahalgam terror attack, he said India had exercised its right to defend against terrorism and pre-empt as well as deter further cross-border attacks. “During the Pahalgam terror attack, victims were shot after they were profiled on religious identity.
He stressed the need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of terror and to bring them to justice. He termed any and every act of terrorism as criminal and unjustifiable. SCO members, he said, must condemn this evil unequivocally.
The Defence Minister’s refusal to sign the joint statement reflects India’s stern stand against terror now and falls in line with the global messaging in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor
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