External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday hit out at Pakistan over the Kashmir issue and said that the issue to be resolved between both the countries now is only the restoration of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) to India.
While addressing the 79th United Nations General Assembly Session (UNGA) in New York, he said, “We heard some bizarre assertions from this very forum yesterday. Let me make India’s position very clear – Pakistan’s policy of cross-border terrorism will never succeed. And it can have no expectation of impunity. On the contrary, actions will certainly have consequences. The issue to be resolved between us is only the vacation of illegally occupied Indian territory by Pakistan and of course, abandonment of Pakistan long long-standing attachment to terrorism.”
Speaking further about Pakistan’s policy of “harbouring terrorists” on its soil, Jaishankar said, “Many countries get left behind due to circumstances beyond their control. But some make conscious choices with disastrous consequences. A premier example is our neighbour, Pakistan. Unfortunately, their misdeeds affect others as well, especially the neighbourhood.”
“When this polity instils such fanaticism among its people, its GDP can only be measured in terms of radicalisation and its exports in the form of terrorism. Today, we see the ills it sought to visit on others consume its own society. It can’t blame the world; this is only karma,” he added.
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The minister further extended India’s support to the UNGA and highlighted the ongoing crisis at the global stage, stating that ‘the assembly has gathered at a difficult time’.
“…We strongly support the 79th UNGA theme – ‘Leaving No-one Behind’. We are gathered here at a difficult time. The world has yet to recover from the ravages of the Covid pandemic. A war in Ukraine is well into its third year and the conflict in Gaza is acquiring wider ramifications,” Jaishankar said while addressing the UNGA.