Islamabad. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said that if cross-border activities are based on the “three evils” of terrorism, extremism and separatism, then there is no possibility of cooperation in areas like trade, energy and connectivity. Addressing a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Jaishankar also said that territorial integrity and sovereignty should be recognized in trade and connectivity initiatives and it is necessary to have “honest dialogue” on trust deficit.
The External Affairs Minister led the Indian delegation at a summit of SCO countries held in Islamabad. This conference was presided over by Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif. Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang and other leaders were also present in the conference.
Jaishankar made these comments amid concerns over the ongoing military standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh and China’s growing military power in the Indian Ocean and other strategic waters.
Before the summit, Pakistan Prime Minister Sharif shook hands with Jaishankar and warmly welcomed him and the leaders of other SCO member countries at the Jinnah Convention Centre, the summit venue. Sharif and Jaishankar also shook hands and talked briefly during dinner yesterday.
In his address at the conference, Jaishankar expressed concern over several challenges including dealing with the three evils of terrorism, extremism and separatism.
Without naming Pakistan, he said, “If cross-border activities are related to terrorism, extremism and separatism, then they are not likely to promote trade, energy flows, connectivity and people-to-people exchanges.”
Before leaving Islamabad, Jaishankar thanked Prime Minister Sharif and Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in a post on ‘X’, which is being seen as a positive gesture by senior Pakistani officials. He also described the meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of SCO as ‘meaningful’.