External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday took a swipe at Pakistan during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, stating that if cross-border activities between two nations are characterised by extremism and separatism, it is hardly likely to help bilateral trade, relations, and other activities.
"It is axiomatic that development and growth requires peace and stability. And as the Charter spelt out, this means being firm and uncompromising in countering the ‘three evils’. If activities across borders are characterised by terrorism, extremism and separatism, they are hardly likely to encourage trade, energy flows, connectivity and people-to-people exchanges in parallel," Jaishankar said at the two-day summit in Islamabad.
The External Affairs Minister stressed that SCO’s "primary goal of combatting terrorism, separatism and extremism is even more crucial in current times". He noted that globalisation and rebalancing are current day realities and SCO countries need to take this forward.
"It requires honest conversation, trust, good neighbourliness and reaffirming commitment to SCO Charter," he asserted.
Delivering India's national statement at the SCO Council of Heads of Government meeting, the minister further said, "Cooperation must be based on mutual respect and sovereign equality, recognise territorial integrity and sovereignty and be built on genuine partnerships, not unilateral agendas. SCO cannot progress if we cherry-pick global practices, especially of trade and transit".
Jaishankar also listed India's global initiatives and national endeavours toward sustainability and holistic development, which include the International Solar Alliance, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, Mission LiFE which advocates sustainable lifestyle, the promotion of Yoga, Global Biofuel Alliance, International Big Cat Alliance, and similar efforts.
The Minister noted that the world is going through "difficult times," referencing "two major conflicts," each with global repercussions, as well as the developing world's struggle to recover from COVID-induced devastation, mounting debt, and other challenges. He emphasised that the solution lies in strengthening mutual trust, friendship, good neighbourliness, and fostering multi-faceted, especially regional, cooperation.
He also congratulated Pakistan for its presidency of the SCO summit this year and said India has extended its full support for a successful presidency.
Jaishankar is leading India's delegation at the SCO summit, a forum of Eurasian countries for political, economic, international security, and defence cooperation. The visit marks the first by a senior Indian official to Pakistan in almost a decade; however, no bilateral talks are scheduled between India and Pakistan.
