'The Main Issue We Have is Terrorism': India’s Ambassador at UN on Engaging With Pakistan

New York: India’s envoy at United Nations highlighted first issue that New Delhi faces in engaging with its neighbour Islamab, saying, “With Pakistan, main issue we have is of terrorism."

comments by UN Ambassor Parvathaneni Harish were me during keynote dress on ‘Responding to Key Global Challenges: India Way’ at an event at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA).

When asked to speak on Pakistan during session, Harish said Prime Minister Narendra Modi me an effort to reach out and engage with Pakistan.

“Terrorist activities in India have eroded trust. first issue in engaging with Pakistan is cessation of terrorism. That is a key issue.” 

In his dress, UN envoy emphasised that terrorism is a big issue on global stage.

“India has been a long-standing victim of cross-border and global terrorism,” he said as he described terrorism as an “existential threat” to humanity that knows no borders, no nationality and for which re can be no justification.

“Terrorism can only be combated through international collaboration,” he said.

On what is ‘India Way’ in dealing with terrorism, Harish underlined that a “big focus” for country has been on taking along its international partners to combat terrorism as he stressed that India has zero tolerance for scourge.

“A single attack is one too many. A single-life loss is one too many. How do we reinvigorate international counter-terrorism agenda, including at UN and especially at UN? How do we dress new challenges in dealing with terrorism, cyber terror, new technologies, terror financing, state culpability and online ricalisation? How do we ensure that justice is delivered to victims of terrorism,” he said ding that accountability and justice delivery are very important.

Emphasising that justice delayed is justice denied, Harish said end goal is “Never again. We don't want a 9/11, has happened here. We don't want a 26/11. Has happened in Mumbai,” a reference to September 11 terror attacks on World Tre Centre twin towers in Manhattan carried out by Al Qaeda and November 26, 2008 terror attacks across Mumbai perpetrated by Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba.

He furr noted that unfortunately, re has been an enhanced salience of nuclear weapons now. "India has always stood for universal, verifiable, non-discriminatory nuclear disarmament. We do not believe that you can create pools of nuclear weapons-free zones in a world where means of delivery are global, so we stand for universal disarmament, of course, verifiable and non-discriminatory." India follows a policy of maintaining a credible minimum deterrence based on no first use and non-use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states, he said.

“In recent years, a big issue, of course, is new threats and increasingly, international community is called upon to collaborate to come up with measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction,” he said.

(Inputs from PTI)