Jaishankar at UNGA: India will exercise its right to defend itself against terrorism

Indias right to defend itself against terrorism will be exercised and friendship and goodwill cannot coexist with the scourge External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday calling out Pakistans misrepresentation of facts in the UN General AssemblyYesterday a serial practitioner of terrorism misrepresented facts before this Assembly Arguments were invoked to normalise terrorism and claim immunity from its consequences That will not stand Jaishankar said as he delivered Indias national statement at the General Debate at the highlevel 81st session of the UN General Assembly Our right to defend ourselves against terrorism will be exercisedFriendship and goodwill cannot coexist with terrorism And understandings premised on that will naturally be called into question It is for the perpetrator of terrorism to mend its ways he said without naming Pakistan and the UNGA address by its Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Jaishankar said a persistent threat to peace has been the scourge of terrorism That this could be statesponsored with crossborder purpose makes it a direct affront to the global order Governments indulging in such practices must be held accountableThere must be no dilution in our zerotolerance approach towards terrorism Its financial aspects in particular should be exposed and should be countered he said A day earlier Sharif used the UN General Assembly podium to credit US President Donald Trump for his timely intervention in the 2025 conflict against India India had launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 last year targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistanoccupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that had killed 26 civilians New Delhi has consistently denied any thirdparty interventionSharif also raised the issue of Kashmir as well as the Indus Waters Treaty which India has said will be held in abeyance until Pakistan a global epicentre of terror credibly and irrevocably ends its support for crossborder and all other forms of terrorism Jaishankar expressed hope that at the conclusion of this years General Debate participating delegations will leave with a greater commitment to peace development and prosperityThis cannot be an imposition or even a negotiation it must be a mindset it must be an outlook it must be a belief In the lawns outside this building are recorded the powerful words of Mahatma Gandhi and that should serve as an inspiration for these times and those words are that there is no way to peace peace is the way He also emphasised the need for reformed multilateralism saying the globe is now well on our way towards a multipolar worldAcirc India also voiced appreciation for UN SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres decade of service and dedication to the cause of multilateralism as head of the world organisationIndia deeply values his many contributions in particular his personal support for Mission LiFE he said referring to the Mission Lifestyle for Environment an Indialed global mass movement to promote sustainable living Jaishankar listed the efforts and measures undertaken by India towards contributions for the advancement of humanity Amid turbulent times he highlighted Indias role as a first responder catering to the needs and requirements of nations impacted by natural disasters and conflicts India has consistently sent medical shipments to conflict zones epidemic locations and after natural disastersAs a first responder we were there early be it the Nepal flash floods or the Venezuela earthquakeWhether to meet food and medicine shortages energy and fertiliser needs or creating livelihoods India has contributed continuously and will do so Our capacitybuilding and experiencesharing programmes have made a real difference across the Global South especially in Africa he said Even as India progresses we are conscious of our global responsibilities We know that many of our experiences and achievements are replicable elsewhere The deep solidarity of the Global South has always encouraged us to share what we have he saidOn AI he said it will be very much part of our partnership agenda with the Global South India hosted the AI Impact Summit this February gathering together the best minds on that subject We view AI as a transformational driver for human empowerment economic prosperity and populationscale problem solving We believe in the right of each nation to shape its ecosystem with the development of its own models and deployment strategies consistent with its national goals and priorities He said that in a globalised world we must continuously and vigorously promote international understanding Economic rebalancing is well underway the political one is also visible and the third facet cultural rebalancing must now be taken forwardThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom 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