‘SCO must continue to fight evils of terror, separatism, extremism’, says Jaishankar, raises Pahalgam attack
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "‘SCO must continue to fight evils of terror, separatism, extremism’, says Jaishankar, raises Pahalgam attack")
India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar at the SCO foreign ministers’ conclave being held in Tianjin, China. Photograph: (X\@DrSJaishankar)
Jaishankar said that the world is moving towards greater multi-polarity, not just in terms of redistribution of national capacities, but also the emergence of effective groupings like SCO. He stressed that SCO member nations must agree on a shared agenda for shaping world affairs.
India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Tuesday that the SCO was founded to combat terrorism, separatism, and extremism and, citing the Pahalgam attack, added that it must continue to strive to fight the “three evils”. “The three evils that SCO was founded to combat were terrorism, separatism, and extremism. Not surprisingly, they often occur together. Recently, we in India witnessed a graphic example in the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April 2025. It was deliberately conducted to undermine the tourism economy of Jammu and Kashmir, while sowing a religious divide,” he said while addressing his counterparts at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) foreign ministers’ conclave being held in the city of Tianjin in China.
‘UNSC condemned Pahalgam attack in the strongest terms’
“The UN Security Council, of which some of us are currently members, issued a statement that condemned it in the strongest terms and “underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice. We have since done exactly that and will continue doing so,” he added in an oblique reference to Operation Sindoor, under which India destroyed terrorist havens and hideouts in Pakistan and illegally held Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in pinpointed strikes.
“It is imperative that the SCO, to remain true to its founding objectives, take an uncompromising position on this challenge,” Jaishankar said.
‘Time of considerable disorder in the international system’
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The Indian EAM highlighted that the conclave in Tianjin is being held at a “time of considerable disorder in the international system”.
“We meet at a time of considerable disorder in the international system. In the last few years, we have seen more conflicts, competition, and coercion. Economic instability is also visibly on the rise. The challenge before us is to stabilise the global order, de-risk various dimensions, and, through it all, address longstanding challenges that threaten our collective interests,” Jaishankar said.
The EAM further said that India has taken several initiatives in the SCO in domains ranging from startup and innovation to traditional medicine and digital public infrastructure. “We will continue to positively approach new ideas and proposals that are genuinely for our collective good. It is essential that such cooperation is based on mutual respect, sovereign equality, and in accordance with territorial integrity and sovereignty of member states,” he added.
