The biggest perpetrator and supporter of terrorism posing as its victim: India hits Pakistan at the UN

Emphasizing that the fight against terrorism must be relentless and on all fronts, the Counsel / Legal Advisor of the Permanent Mission of India to the UN, Dr. Kajal Bhat, said that all member states must fulfill their obligations enshrined in international instruments and conventions against terrorism.

“Let me express my dismay that Pakistan has once again misused this august forum to repeat adnauseam its litany of lies,” Bhat said at the sixth meeting of the General Assembly (Legal) committee on ‘Measures to eliminate international terrorism. ‘

“Here is the biggest perpetrator and supporter of terrorism posing as its victim. We condemn his Pavlovian response wherever the name of India is mentioned and we reject all his accusations and insinuations, ”he said Wednesday.

India’s forceful response came after Pakistan’s UN envoy Munir Akram again questioned the Kashmir issue at the Sixth Committee meeting and made unsubstantiated accusations against India in his comments.

“Jammu and Kashmir is and will always be part of India,” he said.

“We call on Pakistan to stop cleaning up its own minorities, including Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and others,” Bhat said.

While some states lack the necessary legal-operational frameworks and capabilities to combat the financing of terrorism (CFT), others are “clearly guilty of aiding and supporting terrorism by providing financial assistance and safe havens to terrorists,” Bhat said. , in a veiled reference to Pakistan.

“We must improve the capacities of the former, but we must collectively call on the latter and hold them accountable,” he said.

Bhat said that terrorism continues to persist globally, spreading to new areas, and terrorists have significantly improved their capabilities by gaining access to new and emerging technologies such as drones, virtual currencies and encrypted communications to further their goals and achieve their evil deeds.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has made the situation even worse. Isolation due to the blockade, anguish and economic uncertainty has made the world more susceptible to radicalizing narratives and violent extremist propaganda, ”he said.

Stating that terrorists in one place are a “threat” to the entire world, Bhat said that fighting terrorism collectively requires “action by all of us, without exception.”

He underscored India’s condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and the firm conviction that there can be no exception or justification for any act of terrorism, regardless of the motivations behind such acts and wherever, whenever and by whom. whatever they are committed.

“There can be no bad terrorists or good terrorists according to their intentions or objectives.”

As a member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), India is already in the process of updating its Financial Intelligence Network to ensure faster referral of terrorist financing cases to law enforcement agencies, it said.

India reiterated the need for an early completion of the Draft Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, and said the UN must do more in this direction.

“We believe that when the right actions are not taken at the right time, then it is the moment itself that causes the action to fail,” said Bhat, who emphatically called on states to join in their efforts and end the stalemate that prevents the adoption of the Comprehensive Convention. on International Terrorism (CCIT).

“We all need the CCIT as a law enforcement instrument that should strengthen the existing framework of the global conventions against terrorism,” he said.

India expressed its hope that the United Nations General Assembly Resolution of December 2020 recommending that the Sixth Committee establish the “Working Group” with a view to finalizing the process on the draft comprehensive convention on international terrorism international community . ”

Welcoming the adoption of the seventh Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (GCTS) review resolution by the General Assembly by consensus in June 2021, Bhat expressed hope that member states will “lead by example” and implement the strategy by taking effective action.

India had contributed constructively to the GCTS negotiations, especially to strengthen language on countering terrorism financing, preventing misuse of emerging technologies, strengthening the rights of victims of terrorism, providing greater financial resources to the UN architecture against terrorism and the obligations of member states to take effective measures to prevent terrorist activities.