CDS warns Pak of decisive action if FATF doesn't blacklist, extols post-9/11 war on terror

While speaking at the Raisina Dialogue, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat has opined that one of the measures of combatting terrorism is identifying the nations sponsoring terror and blacklisting them at the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), and If blacklisting Pakistan doesn't yield favourable results then a decisive action will be taken. 

Elaborating on the causes of deep-rooted terrorism, the CDS said, "The war on terror is something which is going to continue and we have to live with it until we understand the roots of terror. So long there are going to be states that are sponsoring terrorism, so long there are going to be states that are going to use terrorists as their proxies, make weapons and funding available to them, we cannot control terror."

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The American way

The CDS opined that a war must be waged on terror in a manner the Americans did after 9/11 attack. "We have to bring an end to terrorism and that can only happen the way the Americans started after the 9/11, they said let's go on a global war spree on terror, let the nations join and fight terrorism together. Well to do that you have to isolate the terrorist or anybody who is sponsoring terrorism has to be taken to task. You cannot have partners who are with you in the global war on terror and yet sponsoring proxies and terror".

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Referring to India's act of diplomatic isolation of Pakistan, "An international message that has to go to them (Pakistan), hard action being taken and I feel one of the measures being adopted is blacklisting by the FATF, diplomatic isolation, you have to bring about acceptability in the nation (Pakistan) that yes they are sponsors of terrorism. To say that they are not denying it but they are themselves the victim of terrorism cannot continue for on and on, and we have to get the bull by his horns and bring them to task", said Rawat adding, "if blacklisting by FATF doesn't yield results then we will go for some decisive action".

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