India on Thursday said Pakistan’s campaign to highlight Kashmir at the United Nations had failed even as the Ministry of External Affairs stopped short of giving a definitive answer on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plans to attend the November SAARC summit in Islamabad. Uncertainty continued over Mr. Modi’s presence at SAARC as India held consultations with Afghanistan and the U.S., and pushed Pakistan to shut down the infrastructure of terrorism affecting South Asia and the world. The MEA said the question of Mr. Modi’s visit to Islamabad could not be answered in a “yes” or “no”.
“SAARC stands for regional cooperation which is underpinned by peace and stability. The biggest threat to peace and stability we all know is terrorism. Squarely addressing this will benefit the entire region and also strengthen regional cooperation. I am sure all member-countries of SAARC need to reflect on this. Coordination with Bangladesh, with Afghanistan — I cannot go into that but certainly all victims of terrorism stand in solidarity,” said MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup.
India’s stand on solidarity among terror victims came after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif described slain Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani as a “young leader” in his UNGA speech. India had rebutted it by saying that the Pakistani leader had used the highest podium of the U.N. to “glorify” terrorism.
