Highlighting China’s stranglehold on the Security Council sanctioning Pakistan-based terrorists, India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Thursday denounced the politics giving them impunity.
“Politics should never ever provide cover to evade accountability. Nor indeed to facilitate impunity,” he said when the Security Council met on impunity for the crimes in Ukraine.
“Regrettably, we have seen this of late in this very Chamber, when it comes to sanctioning some of the world’s most dreaded terrorists”, he said alluding to China blocking sanctions against Pakistan-based terrorists Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) leader Sajid Mir, involved in the 2008 Mumbai attack, Jaish-e Mohammed (JEM) leader Abdul Rauf Azhar, and Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) leader Abdul Rehman Makki.
“If egregious attacks committed in broad daylight are left unpunished, this Council must reflect on the signals we are sending on impunity. There must be consistency if we are to ensure credibility”, he said alluding to the Pakistan-based terrorists escaping sanctions with China’s support.
Jaishankar did not name China, Pakistan or the terrorists.
Speaking at another forum, Sanjay Verma, Secretary, West in the External Affairs Ministry, called for justice for victims of terrorism.
At the Ministerial Meeting of Groups of Friends of Victims of Terrorism, Verma asked the international community to uphold the right to justice for the victims of cross-border terrorist attacks including 26/11 Mumbai attacks, by bringing the perpetrators to justice.
On the topic of Ukraine under direct discussion at the Security Council, Jaishankar said: “Even in conflict situations, there can be no justification for violation of human rights or of international law (and) where any such acts occur, it is imperative that they are investigated in an objective and independent manner.”
He said that India backed independent investigations into the killings in Bucha, a city in Ukraine where more than 400 bodies were found in April after Russian troops withdrew from there.