News Analysis India

Tag: UNSC

  • ‘New low even for you’: India blasts Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto for Modi attack

    By Agencies

    NEW DELHI: India on Friday came down heavily on Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for launching a personal attack on PM Narendra Modi, terming it a ‘new low’ even for that country.

    The latest exchange between the neighbouring rivals happened on the sidelines of an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council in New York across Wednesday and Thursday.

    Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar had told Pakistan to “clean up your act and try to be (a) good neighbour”, while terming the country the “epicentre of terrorism”.

    “Hillary Clinton, during her visit to Pakistan, said that if you keep snakes in your backyard you can’t expect them to bite only your neighbours, eventually they will bite the people who keep them in the backyard,” he had observed.

    In response, Pakistani foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said India was seeking to conflate Muslims and terrorists in both countries.

    He told Jaishankar that “Osama bin Laden is dead, (but) the Butcher of Gujarat lives and he is the prime minister of India”.

    Bhutto Zardari went on to say that his country had lost far more lives to terrorism and that he himself was a victim, referring to his mother Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated by a suicide bomber in 2007.

    “Why would we want our own people to suffer? We absolutely do not,” he stated.

    WATCH |

    Responding to the exchange, India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said it was a “new low even for Pakistan”, while quipping that “‘Made in Pakistan’ terrorism had to stop”.

    Bagchi said the Pakistan foreign minister’s “frustration” would be better directed towards the masterminds of terrorist enterprises in his own country, who have made terrorism a part of their “state policy”.

    “Pakistan is a country that glorifies Osama bin Laden as a martyr, and shelters terrorists like Lakhvi, Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar, Sajid Mir and Dawood Ibrahim. No other country can boast of having 126 UN-designated terrorists and 27 UN-designated terrorist entities,” Bagchi asserted.

    NEW DELHI: India on Friday came down heavily on Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for launching a personal attack on PM Narendra Modi, terming it a ‘new low’ even for that country.

    The latest exchange between the neighbouring rivals happened on the sidelines of an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council in New York across Wednesday and Thursday.

    Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar had told Pakistan to “clean up your act and try to be (a) good neighbour”, while terming the country the “epicentre of terrorism”.

    “Hillary Clinton, during her visit to Pakistan, said that if you keep snakes in your backyard you can’t expect them to bite only your neighbours, eventually they will bite the people who keep them in the backyard,” he had observed.

    In response, Pakistani foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said India was seeking to conflate Muslims and terrorists in both countries.

    He told Jaishankar that “Osama bin Laden is dead, (but) the Butcher of Gujarat lives and he is the prime minister of India”.

    Bhutto Zardari went on to say that his country had lost far more lives to terrorism and that he himself was a victim, referring to his mother Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated by a suicide bomber in 2007.

    “Why would we want our own people to suffer? We absolutely do not,” he stated.

    WATCH |

    Responding to the exchange, India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said it was a “new low even for Pakistan”, while quipping that “‘Made in Pakistan’ terrorism had to stop”.

    Bagchi said the Pakistan foreign minister’s “frustration” would be better directed towards the masterminds of terrorist enterprises in his own country, who have made terrorism a part of their “state policy”.

    “Pakistan is a country that glorifies Osama bin Laden as a martyr, and shelters terrorists like Lakhvi, Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar, Sajid Mir and Dawood Ibrahim. No other country can boast of having 126 UN-designated terrorists and 27 UN-designated terrorist entities,” Bagchi asserted.

  • India abstains on UNSC resolution exempting humanitarian aid from sanctions

    By PTI

    UNITED NATIONS: India has abstained in the UN Security Council on a resolution establishing humanitarian exemption across all United Nations sanctions regimes, asserting that blacklisted terror groups, including in its neighbourhood, have taken full advantage of such carve-outs and have been able to raise funds and recruit fighters.

    The 15-nation Council, currently being presided over by India, voted on the resolution on Friday that was tabled by the US and Ireland to create a sanctions carve-out that exempted humanitarian efforts, with Washington asserting that the resolution “will save countless lives” after being adopted.

    India was the sole abstention while all other 14 members of the Council voted in favour of the resolution that decided that processing or payment of funds, other financial assets, economic resources, and provision of goods and services necessary to ensure the timely delivery of humanitarian assistance are permitted and are not a violation of the asset freezes imposed by the Council or its Sanctions Committee.

    Council President and India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj, speaking in her national capacity as she delivered the explanation of the vote, said that “our concerns emanate from proven instances of terrorist groups taking full advantage of such humanitarian carve-outs, and making a mockery of sanction regimes, including that of the 1267 Sanctions Committee.”

    Kamboj also made a thinly-veiled reference to Pakistan and the terror outfits based on its soil.

    “There have also been several cases of terrorist groups in our neighbourhood, including those listed by this Council, re-incarnating themselves as humanitarian organisations and civil society groups precisely to evade these sanctions,” she said in an apparent reference to Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), which calls itself a humanitarian charity but is widely seen as a front organisation for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LET).

    Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation (FIF), a charity run by terror outfits JuD and LeT, and Al Rehmat Trust, backed by another terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) are also based in Pakistan.

    “These terrorist organisations use the umbrella of the humanitarian assistance space to raise funds and recruit fighters,” she said.

    “India will call for caution and due diligence to be exercised while extending humanitarian assistance to proscribed entities under 1267, who continue to thrive with full state hospitality in territories universally acknowledged as terrorist havens by the international community,” she said.

    Kamboj reiterated that under no circumstances, the garb of humanitarian cover, intended to be provided by these exemptions, should be misused by proscribed terrorist groups to expand their terror activities in the region and beyond.

    “More importantly, such exemptions must not facilitate the ‘mainstreaming’ of terror entities in the political space in our region. Due diligence and extreme caution in the implementation of this resolution, therefore is an absolute must,” she said.

    #IndiainUNSC“Due diligence and extreme caution in the implementation of the resolution, therefore is an absolute must..”#India’s Explanation of Vote by Ambassador @RuchiraKamboj at the #UNSC Resolution on Humanitarian Exemption for Sanctions Regimes today pic.twitter.com/LkrYujV9S3

    — India at UN, NY (@IndiaUNNewYork) December 10, 2022

    Kamboj said that for this very reason, India had sought in the text of the resolution a proactive role for the 1267 Monitoring Team, coupled with robust reporting standards and mechanisms.

    “We regret that these specific concerns were not fully addressed in today’s final text. We hope that this shortcoming will be corrected in the future, as and when we review the implementation and feedback from the Monitoring Team on this resolution.”

    Before the UNSC vote, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said “we hope the members of this Council will vote in favour of this resolution, because we must all do everything in our power to help humanitarian partners reach the world’s most vulnerable, regardless of where they live, who they live with, and who controls their territory.”ALSO READ | Nations that aid terror must pay the price, says PM Modi

    US Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the adoption of the resolution, saying that the Security Council is sending a clear message that sanctions will not impede the delivery of critical humanitarian assistance by reputable humanitarian organisations.

    He added that the resolution includes safeguards against abuse and evasion by sanctioned persons and entities, including establishing reporting requirements to ensure the detection and mitigation of possible aid diversion.

    “By providing exceptions for humanitarian activities across UN sanctions regimes, the Resolution provides much-needed clarity to the international community, humanitarian assistance providers, and critical commercial service providers, which will help facilitate the delivery of aid and goods that are critical to saving lives around the world,” he said.

    Blinken said this goal is more important than ever as the world faces unprecedented levels of humanitarian need, with some 339 million people in need of humanitarian aid and nearly 50 million people on the verge of famine.

    “We are committed to supporting life-saving humanitarian efforts, providing more than USD 17 billion in bilateral humanitarian assistance in FY 2022,” he said.

    Thomas-Greenfield said that while sanctions are an important tool in “our arsenal” and help constrain “bad actors without resorting to violence” and stop terrorists, the humanitarian community feels that some UN sanctions unintentionally make aid more difficult to deliver.ALSO READ | Priority should be given to countering terror financing: NSA Doval

    The Council has dealt with issues of sanctions carve-out for humanitarian aid on a case-by-case basis.

    The US envoy said the humanitarian community asked for the creation of a single, standard carve-out of humanitarian assistance from UN sanctions regimes.

    “Today, we delivered on that request. In unambiguous language, we have exempted critical humanitarian activities from UN sanctions, and in doing so, we have also made our existing UN sanctions more effective and better targeted toward bad actors,” she said.

    Irish Ambassador Fergal Mythen said the resolution, which establishes a humanitarian carve-out across all UN sanctions regimes, has a very clear aim of dealing systematically with the unintended or unintended humanitarian consequences of UN sanctions regimes.

    UNITED NATIONS: India has abstained in the UN Security Council on a resolution establishing humanitarian exemption across all United Nations sanctions regimes, asserting that blacklisted terror groups, including in its neighbourhood, have taken full advantage of such carve-outs and have been able to raise funds and recruit fighters.

    The 15-nation Council, currently being presided over by India, voted on the resolution on Friday that was tabled by the US and Ireland to create a sanctions carve-out that exempted humanitarian efforts, with Washington asserting that the resolution “will save countless lives” after being adopted.

    India was the sole abstention while all other 14 members of the Council voted in favour of the resolution that decided that processing or payment of funds, other financial assets, economic resources, and provision of goods and services necessary to ensure the timely delivery of humanitarian assistance are permitted and are not a violation of the asset freezes imposed by the Council or its Sanctions Committee.

    Council President and India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj, speaking in her national capacity as she delivered the explanation of the vote, said that “our concerns emanate from proven instances of terrorist groups taking full advantage of such humanitarian carve-outs, and making a mockery of sanction regimes, including that of the 1267 Sanctions Committee.”

    Kamboj also made a thinly-veiled reference to Pakistan and the terror outfits based on its soil.

    “There have also been several cases of terrorist groups in our neighbourhood, including those listed by this Council, re-incarnating themselves as humanitarian organisations and civil society groups precisely to evade these sanctions,” she said in an apparent reference to Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), which calls itself a humanitarian charity but is widely seen as a front organisation for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LET).

    Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation (FIF), a charity run by terror outfits JuD and LeT, and Al Rehmat Trust, backed by another terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) are also based in Pakistan.

    “These terrorist organisations use the umbrella of the humanitarian assistance space to raise funds and recruit fighters,” she said.

    “India will call for caution and due diligence to be exercised while extending humanitarian assistance to proscribed entities under 1267, who continue to thrive with full state hospitality in territories universally acknowledged as terrorist havens by the international community,” she said.

    Kamboj reiterated that under no circumstances, the garb of humanitarian cover, intended to be provided by these exemptions, should be misused by proscribed terrorist groups to expand their terror activities in the region and beyond.

    “More importantly, such exemptions must not facilitate the ‘mainstreaming’ of terror entities in the political space in our region. Due diligence and extreme caution in the implementation of this resolution, therefore is an absolute must,” she said.

    #IndiainUNSC
    “Due diligence and extreme caution in the implementation of the resolution, therefore is an absolute must..”#India’s Explanation of Vote by Ambassador @RuchiraKamboj at the #UNSC Resolution on Humanitarian Exemption for Sanctions Regimes today pic.twitter.com/LkrYujV9S3

    — India at UN, NY (@IndiaUNNewYork) December 10, 2022

    Kamboj said that for this very reason, India had sought in the text of the resolution a proactive role for the 1267 Monitoring Team, coupled with robust reporting standards and mechanisms.

    “We regret that these specific concerns were not fully addressed in today’s final text. We hope that this shortcoming will be corrected in the future, as and when we review the implementation and feedback from the Monitoring Team on this resolution.”

    Before the UNSC vote, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said “we hope the members of this Council will vote in favour of this resolution, because we must all do everything in our power to help humanitarian partners reach the world’s most vulnerable, regardless of where they live, who they live with, and who controls their territory.”ALSO READ | Nations that aid terror must pay the price, says PM Modi

    US Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the adoption of the resolution, saying that the Security Council is sending a clear message that sanctions will not impede the delivery of critical humanitarian assistance by reputable humanitarian organisations.

    He added that the resolution includes safeguards against abuse and evasion by sanctioned persons and entities, including establishing reporting requirements to ensure the detection and mitigation of possible aid diversion.

    “By providing exceptions for humanitarian activities across UN sanctions regimes, the Resolution provides much-needed clarity to the international community, humanitarian assistance providers, and critical commercial service providers, which will help facilitate the delivery of aid and goods that are critical to saving lives around the world,” he said.

    Blinken said this goal is more important than ever as the world faces unprecedented levels of humanitarian need, with some 339 million people in need of humanitarian aid and nearly 50 million people on the verge of famine.

    “We are committed to supporting life-saving humanitarian efforts, providing more than USD 17 billion in bilateral humanitarian assistance in FY 2022,” he said.

    Thomas-Greenfield said that while sanctions are an important tool in “our arsenal” and help constrain “bad actors without resorting to violence” and stop terrorists, the humanitarian community feels that some UN sanctions unintentionally make aid more difficult to deliver.ALSO READ | Priority should be given to countering terror financing: NSA Doval

    The Council has dealt with issues of sanctions carve-out for humanitarian aid on a case-by-case basis.

    The US envoy said the humanitarian community asked for the creation of a single, standard carve-out of humanitarian assistance from UN sanctions regimes.

    “Today, we delivered on that request. In unambiguous language, we have exempted critical humanitarian activities from UN sanctions, and in doing so, we have also made our existing UN sanctions more effective and better targeted toward bad actors,” she said.

    Irish Ambassador Fergal Mythen said the resolution, which establishes a humanitarian carve-out across all UN sanctions regimes, has a very clear aim of dealing systematically with the unintended or unintended humanitarian consequences of UN sanctions regimes.

  • India to host UNSC counter-terrorism meet for first time

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: India will be hosting the UNSC Counter-Terrorism Committee meeting for the first time later this month. The agenda would be to focus on threats imposed by technology including social media.

    “All 15 permanent UNSC member states are expected to take part in this meeting spread over two days in Mumbai and Delhi (October 28th and 29th). The focus of the special meeting will be on addressing the use of new and emerging technologies for both terrorist purposes and for countering terrorism. This has been an issue of increasing concern for the Member States, policymakers and researchers,’’ say sources.

    New and emerging technologies – particularly information and communications technologies (ICT) such as the Internet, social media platforms, and financial technologies have become a favoured tool for terrorists such as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)/Da’esh, Al-Qaida, their affiliated groups, other terrorist organizations, and their supporters to engage in terrorism. The Member States already face a significant and growing threat including incitement to terrorism and violent extremism conducive to terrorism, recruitment, training, planning, networking, securing logistical support, acquiring weapons and their components, fundraising, and conducting terrorist operations.

    Other objectives include identifying continuing challenges, sharing good practices in compliance with international human rights laws, industry action, public-private partnerships,  legislative policy and regulatory responses, the UN said in a statement.

    “The three main areas of discussion would include the use of social media, terrorism financing and unmanned aerial system (UAS),’’ according to the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED).

    With the growing prevalence of technology and the rapid rise in digitization, addressing the use of new and emerging technologies for both terrorist purposes, the UN Security Council has given focus to this issue in a number of counter-terrorism-related resolutions, most recently its resolution 2617 (2021), which specifically refers to “emerging technologies”.

    Terrorists move or store funds through the use of digital marketplaces and wallets, online payment platforms and applications, mobile payments or virtual currencies. There is also an increased risk of the abuse of the Internet by terrorist organizations for fundraising through crowdfunding, merchandise sales, donation appeals through social media platforms, and other methods. At the same time, innovations in financial technologies, products and services offer significant economic opportunities and provide effective tools to respond to emerging threats.

    Mindful of the increasing threat posed by the misuse of new and emerging technologies, this meeting will include the participation of relevant operational partners, including United Nations organizations, international and regional organizations, civil society organizations (CSOs), private-sector entities, and members of the Global Research Network (GRN) of the CTED.

    “The Special Meeting in India will provide an overview of the ways in which the Member States are deploying new and emerging technological developments. Secondly, they will update member states on threats posed by terrorists. Thirdly, they would be able to identify continuing challenges. Lastly, members will be able to share good practices in legislative, policy, and regulatory responses with international human rights law,’’ said sources.

    The Special Meeting would also provide an opportunity to reflect on the work of the Committee, CTED, taking into consideration specific gender aspects relating to digitalization and technology. 

    NEW DELHI: India will be hosting the UNSC Counter-Terrorism Committee meeting for the first time later this month. The agenda would be to focus on threats imposed by technology including social media.

    “All 15 permanent UNSC member states are expected to take part in this meeting spread over two days in Mumbai and Delhi (October 28th and 29th). The focus of the special meeting will be on addressing the use of new and emerging technologies for both terrorist purposes and for countering terrorism. This has been an issue of increasing concern for the Member States, policymakers and researchers,’’ say sources.

    New and emerging technologies – particularly information and communications technologies (ICT) such as the Internet, social media platforms, and financial technologies have become a favoured tool for terrorists such as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)/Da’esh, Al-Qaida, their affiliated groups, other terrorist organizations, and their supporters to engage in terrorism. The Member States already face a significant and growing threat including incitement to terrorism and violent extremism conducive to terrorism, recruitment, training, planning, networking, securing logistical support, acquiring weapons and their components, fundraising, and conducting terrorist operations.

    Other objectives include identifying continuing challenges, sharing good practices in compliance with international human rights laws, industry action, public-private partnerships,  legislative policy and regulatory responses, the UN said in a statement.

    “The three main areas of discussion would include the use of social media, terrorism financing and unmanned aerial system (UAS),’’ according to the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED).

    With the growing prevalence of technology and the rapid rise in digitization, addressing the use of new and emerging technologies for both terrorist purposes, the UN Security Council has given focus to this issue in a number of counter-terrorism-related resolutions, most recently its resolution 2617 (2021), which specifically refers to “emerging technologies”.

    Terrorists move or store funds through the use of digital marketplaces and wallets, online payment platforms and applications, mobile payments or virtual currencies. There is also an increased risk of the abuse of the Internet by terrorist organizations for fundraising through crowdfunding, merchandise sales, donation appeals through social media platforms, and other methods. At the same time, innovations in financial technologies, products and services offer significant economic opportunities and provide effective tools to respond to emerging threats.

    Mindful of the increasing threat posed by the misuse of new and emerging technologies, this meeting will include the participation of relevant operational partners, including United Nations organizations, international and regional organizations, civil society organizations (CSOs), private-sector entities, and members of the Global Research Network (GRN) of the CTED.

    “The Special Meeting in India will provide an overview of the ways in which the Member States are deploying new and emerging technological developments. Secondly, they will update member states on threats posed by terrorists. Thirdly, they would be able to identify continuing challenges. Lastly, members will be able to share good practices in legislative, policy, and regulatory responses with international human rights law,’’ said sources.

    The Special Meeting would also provide an opportunity to reflect on the work of the Committee, CTED, taking into consideration specific gender aspects relating to digitalization and technology. 

  • Indian students claim thrashing by Ukraine guards as India abstains on UN vote on Ukraine invasion

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  There has been growing distress calls from Indian students stuck at Ukraine-Poland border claiming that they were ‘manhandled’ and ‘ill-treated’ by the Ukrainian security personnel allegedly because India did not condemn the Russian invasion at the UN Security Council.

    Many of these students, who were stuck for over 72 hours in freezing cold conditions, alleged that they were kicked, beaten up, dragged and some even had their phones snatched from them. According to Sandeep Kaur, the Ukrainians were earlier allowing some students to cross but later stopped them from entering Poland. 

    “I was waiting along with my brother and some of our friends in a group. First, the officials asked us to stand in a line and we did. Later they asked the girls to make a separate line… They then let me cross the border while my brother waited on the other side. When my brother said that he too is in the queue, they dragged and beat him with a baton,” Kaur told this correspondent.

    The student rued that there was none from the Indian Embassy to coordinate with the Ukrainian authorities at the border. “After we crossed the Poland border, we met Indian embassy officials but there was none on the Ukrainian side. Boys on the Ukrainian side have been manhandled badly. Now my brother is returning to his college hostel along with his friends as the situation has worsened.”

    When contacted regarding the incidents, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi declined to comment. According to Monisha Kalburgi, a student of Lviv National Medical University, some of her friends returned from the Poland border. Ukrainian personnel are unhappy that India favoured Russia, she claimed, adding that this was the reason for the ill-treatment.

    Another student told this newspaper, “We left at 4 am in the morning from Ternopil. The Indian Embassy had informed that Poland border is open and we can leave, but at the border we were stopped by the Ukrainian Army.”  “The temperature is three degrees. People are falling sick. When we called the Polish embassy, they asked us to call the Kiev Embassy which told us to coordinate with the Polish Embassy,” another student said. 

    ‘No one from embassy to coordinate’ The student rued that there was none from the Indian Embassy to coordinate with the Ukrainian authorities at the border. When contacted regarding the incidents, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi declined to comment

  • India, UAE, China give EOVs, Russia clears its stand on Ukraine in UNSC

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: History will judge us for our actions -or lack thereof.

    Shortly after US Representative to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield uttered these words Russia vetoed a United Nation’s Security Council (UNSC) resolution, earlier on Saturday, which deplored their military action in Ukraine. The motion co-written by US and Albania was supported by 11 of the 15 members, whilst India, China and UAE abstained.

    Ambassador Greenfield further said, “vote no, or abstain, if you do not upload the Charter and align yourselves with the aggressive and unprovoked actions of Russia. Just as Russia had a choice, so do you.”

    India abstained from voting even though it is viewed as a friend of the US (as a member of Quad and strong mention in the Indo Pacific Strategy document). India has had a long-standing association with Russia too and is dependent on it for military equipment.

    “Dialogue is the only answer to settling differences and disputes, however, daunting that may appear at this moment. It is a matter of regret that the path of diplomacy was given up, we must return to it. For these reasons, India has chosen to abstain on this resolution,” according India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, TS Tirumurthi, in India’s Explanation of Vote (EOV).

    ALSO READ | China is Russia’s best hope to blunt sanctions, but wary

    India has been in touch with all sides urging parties concerned to return to the negotiating table.

    The UAE in their EOV said, “The serious developments in Ukraine undermine regional and international peace and security. Throughout the crisis, my country has consistently called for de-escalation and dialogue, we have placed great hope in the various diplomatic intitiatives and channels aimed at resolving the crisis. The result of this vote today was a forgone conclusion, but the avenues for dialogue must remain open more urgently than ever before, and we must pursue them together.”

    Interestingly, UAE’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed and US Secretary of state Anthony Blinken had a telephonic conversation, a day before the vote, discussing Ukraine. A day prior to that Sheikh Abdullah also emphasised on his countries ties with Russia on phone with this Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

    As China-Russia relations are strong at present, China’s abstaining was a given. “I would like to stress that the issue of Ukraine is not something that only emerged today, nor did the current situation occur suddenly overnight. It is the result of interplay of various factors over a long period of time. China advocates the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security. We call on all parties to immediately come back to the track of diplomatic negotiations and political settlement,” said Ambassador Zhang Jun in his EOV.

    However, despite this stance, experts feel this may get altered if sanctions begin to impact them.

    ALSO READ | I need ammunition, not a ride: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declines US offer to evacuate Kyiv

    “China-Russia relations are at the highest level in history, but the two countries are not an alliance,” said Li Xin, an international relations expert at the Shanghai University of Political Science and Law.

    Meanwhile, Russia’s Permanent Representative, Vassily Nebenzia, alleged that the draft of the resolution was not balanced as it was not just against Russia but also against Ukraine.

    “In particular they left behind the story how the Maidan Junta that rose to power after the unconstitutional coup d’etat in Kiev in 2014 waged war on people of Eastern Ukraine, airdropping bombs on Donetsk and Lugansk. How can we not mention ghastly crimes committed by Ukrainian Nazis in the course of past eight years or protestors against Maidan who were burnt alive in Odessa?” said Ambassador Nebenzia.

    Russia has alleged that there is a lot of fake news being circulated with misleading images and footage. They have denied attacking any kindergarten, targeting civilians and have refuted the rumour that radiation at Chernobyl is endangering humans.

    “Radiation levels at the Chernobyl NPP are low, there is no threat to population,” says Director General of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi.

    Time will tell, whether the Russian military invasion of Ukraine was a failure of diplomatic efforts or an outcome of rhetoric. The sanctions imposed on Russia will have a cascading effect on many countries. One can only hope that this war comes to an end.

  • India abstains on UNSC resolution condemning Russia’s ‘aggression’ against Ukraine

    By PTI

    UNITED NATIONS: India abstained on a US-sponsored UN Security Council resolution that condemned Russia’s “aggression” against Ukraine and demanded “immediate, complete and unconditional” withdrawal of Russian forces from the neighbouring country.

    The UN Security Council voted on Friday on the draft resolution sponsored by the US and Albania and supported by several other nations including Poland, Italy, Germany, Estonia, Luxembourg and New Zealand.

    11 countries voted in favour of the resolution while three countries, including India, abstained. 

    A permanent member of the Security Council, Russia used its veto power blocking the resolution, as expected, but western nations said the resolution seeks to show Moscow’s isolation on the global stage for its invasion and actions against Ukraine.

    All eyes were on how India will cast its vote on the resolution given that New Delhi has strong defence ties with Moscow.

    During a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi “appealed for an immediate cessation of violence, and called for concerted efforts from all sides to return to the path of diplomatic negotiations and dialogue.”

    US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to discuss Russia’s “premeditated, unprovoked, and unjustified attack on Ukraine”, the State Department said.

    Blinken “stressed the importance of a strong collective response to condemn Russia’s invasion and call for an immediate withdrawal and ceasefire.”

    India has so far refrained from condemning Russia’s actions in Ukraine and in a statement in the Security Council on Wednesday night, just as Putin ordered Ukraine’s invasion, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador TS Tirumurti expressed “deep concern” over the developments, which if not handled carefully, may well undermine the peace and security of the region.

    Ahead of the UNSC vote, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba said in a tweet that in a call to Jaishankar, he asked “India to use all influence in its relations with Russia to force it to cease military aggression against Ukraine. Urged India as a non-permanent UNSC member to support today’s draft resolution on restoring peace in Ukraine.”

    The resolution condemned Russia’s “aggression against Ukraine” and decides that Russia “shall immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine and shall refrain from any further unlawful threat or use of force against any UN member state.

    ” The resolution also said that Russia “shall immediately, completely, and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders.” The resolution said Moscow “shall immediately and unconditionally reverse the decision related to the status of certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine.”

    A senior Biden administration official had said a day before that Washington was putting forward the resolution “with every expectation that Russia will use its veto” and in doing so, “they will underscore their isolation.”

    “First, of course, we expect that Russia will use its veto. And in doing so, they will underscore their isolation. We’re not going to abandon our principles; we’re not going to stand by and do nothing. It’s important that we send a message to Ukraine, to Russia, and to the world that the Security Council will not look away,” the official said.

  • India’s non-permanent membership provides ‘much-needed’ balance at UNSC in 2021

    By PTI

    UNITED NATIONS: As India began her two-year tenure as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council in January 2021, New Delhi’s presence at the horse-shoe table provided the “much-needed” balance at a time when the powerful organ of the world body grappled with major geo-political crises, including in war-torn Afghanistan.

    When India took up the seat at the 15-nation Council in the beginning of the year, the world was still reeling with the COVID-19 pandemic that ravaged nations and slaughtered economies.

    Just as economies and nations were beginning to open up, the Omicron variant’s lightning-speed spread across the world has given more reason to worry.

    “I am deeply worried. If things do not improve – and improve fast – we face even harder times ahead. COVID-19 is not going away. It is becoming clear that vaccines alone will not eradicate the pandemic,” UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said at his end of the year press conference recently.

    “Vaccines are averting hospitalisation and death for the majority who get them and slowing the spread. But transmissions show no sign of letting up. This is driven by vaccine inequity, hesitancy and complacency,” he said.

    With India wrapping up the first year of the two-year tenure as non-permanent member, the year saw New Delhi providing the “much-needed” balance vis-a-vis the powerful UN body’s five permanent members and their inter-se fissures.

    New Delhi has also been the bridge to ensure the Council’s polarisation does not affect its ability to take a well considered view.

    In his address to the high-level 76th UN General Assembly session in September, which reconvened in a physical format after going virtual last year due to Covid-19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that countries with “regressive thinking” that are using terrorism as a “political tool” must understand that it is an equally big threat for them also, in a veiled attack on Pakistan which is often accused by its neighbours of providing safe havens to terrorists.

    He also called for ensuring that no country “tries to take advantage of the delicate situation in Afghanistan and use it for its own selfish interests.”

    “It is very important to ensure that the soil of Afghanistan is not used for spreading terrorism and terrorist attacks,” he said.

    Modi also said that “When the right work is not done at the right time, time itself destroys the success of that work.

    “If the United Nations has to keep itself relevant, it has to improve its effectiveness, increase its reliability,” he said, adding that a number of questions are being raised at the UN today.

    “We have seen this during the Climate and Covid crisis. The ongoing proxy war in many parts of the world- terrorism and the crisis in Afghanistan have deepened these questions.”

    He gave a clarion call to “constantly strengthen the UN for the protection of the global order, global laws and global values.”

    When India assumed the rotating Presidency of the Council on August 1, not many had expected the unravelling of Afghanistan, which fell into the hands of the Taliban on August 15, leaving nations around the region and the world worried about the fate of the war-torn country and giving rise to fears that a seizure of power by the Taliban will erase the human rights gains of the past two decades.

    “We are in the Security Council at a very significant juncture where we are not only grappling with the unprecedented COVID pandemic, but also dealing with fissures, both in the Security Council and outside, which need to be bridged through greater collective action rather than individual initiatives,” India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti had told PTI.

    A country the size of India with its independent foreign policy has been a welcome entrant into the UN Security Council, providing the “much-needed” balance vis-a-vis the powerful UN body’s five permanent members and their inter-se fissures, he had said ahead of its Presidency of the Council in August.

    India said that as a neighbour of Afghanistan, the situation in the country is of “great concern” to it and hoped there is an inclusive dispensation, which represents all sections of Afghan society, underling that a “broader representation” would help the arrangement gain more acceptability and legitimacy.

    It was under India’s Presidency of the Council that the 15-nation body adopted a significant resolution demanding that territory of Afghanistan not be used to threaten any country or shelter terrorists and that it expects the Taliban will “adhere” to commitments made by it regarding the safe and orderly departure from the country of Afghans and all foreign nationals.

    This was the first resolution adopted by the powerful Council on the situation in Afghanistan following the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban and came on the penultimate day of India’s Presidency of the Security Council for the month of August.

    Tirumurti, in an explanation of vote in favour of a UN Security Council resolution to grant exemption from sanctions for humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, reminded the Council that while the situation in Afghanistan is in flux, the expectations of the international community vis-a-vis Afghanistan were set out clearly in the Security Council resolution 2593.

    The UN Security Council, under India’s Presidency, also unanimously adopted two significant outcome documents on the issue of peacekeeping, with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar underlining that India believes in “walking the talk” when it comes to safety and security of UN peacekeepers.

    Jaishankar, as President of the Security Council in August, hosted an open-debate on peacekeeping under the theme of ‘Protecting the Protectors’.

    During the meeting, a Resolution on ‘Accountability of Crimes against UN Peacekeepers’ as well as Presidential Statement on ‘Technology for Peacekeeping’, the first such UN Security Council document on this topic, was adopted.

    The Resolution on accountability for crimes against UN Peacekeepers, drafted by India, was co-sponsored by all the members of the Security Council, and a total of over 80 UN Member States, signifying the support of the international community to the issue of peacekeeping, which India had highlighted as one of the priority areas during its Presidency of the 15-nation body.

    On the occasion, India in coordination with the UN also announced the roll-out of the UNITE Aware Platform, which Jaishankar said is an initiative “based on the expectation that an entire peacekeeping operation can be visualised, coordinated, and monitored on a real time basis.”

    “In August, the UNSC, led by India, underlined the primacy of United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) which sets out the legal framework applicable to activities in the oceas, including countering illicit activities at sea,” sending a strong message to China.

    In the Presidential Statement (PRST), adopted unanimously by the Security Council reaffirmed that “international law, as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 (UNCLOS), sets out the legal framework applicable to activities in the oceans, including countering illicit activities at sea.”

    This is highly significant since it marks the first ever outcome document by the UNSC on the issue of maritime security.

    Also for the first time in the PRST there are references to UNCLOS, a convention over which China has had long-standing reservations and objections.

    In 2016, an international tribunal ruled against China’s claims to rights in the disputed South China Sea.

    Beijing dismissed the ruling that favoured the Philippines and said it would not be bound by it.

    Modi also became the first Indian Prime Minister to preside over a UN Security Council Open Debate as he chaired the high-level session on ‘Enhancing Maritime Security – A Case for International Cooperation’ on August 9.

  • Have ensured our assistance does not create indebtedness: India says, in apparent swipe at China

    By PTI

    UNITED NATIONS: India told the UNSC that it has always strived to foster global solidarity across the world with its development partnership efforts fully respecting national priorities and ensured that its assistance does not create “indebtedness”, in an apparent swipe at China.

    Addressing the UN Security Council open debate on ‘Maintenance of International Peace and Security: Exclusion, Inequality and Conflict’ held under the current Presidency of Mexico, Minister of State for External Affairs Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh said whether it is with India’s neighbours under the “Neighbourhood First” policy or with African partners or with other developing countries, “India has remained and will continue to be a source of strong support to help them build back better and stronger.”

    “India has always strived to foster global solidarity across the world with our development partnership efforts fully respecting national priorities and ensuring that our assistance remains demand-driven, contributes to employment generation and capacity building and does not create indebtedness. This is particularly true in countries in the post-conflict phase,” Singh said.

    Singh’s remarks appeared to be a thinly-veiled reference to China.

    There have been global concerns over debt traps and regional hegemony by China using its ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects.

    China is doling out huge sums of money for infrastructure projects in countries from Asia to Africa and Europe.

    The Donald Trump administration had been extremely critical of the BRI and had been of the view that China’s “predatory financing” is leaving smaller counties under huge debt endangering their sovereignty.

    Singh further said that international efforts in the maintenance of peace and security need to be inclusive.

    The process of implementing a peace agreement must run along with the provision of humanitarian and emergency assistance, resumption of economic activity, and the creation of political and administrative institutions that improve governance and include all stakeholders, particularly women and disadvantaged sections.

    “We also need to avoid politicising humanitarian and developmental assistance in conflict situations. The humanitarian action must be primarily guided by the principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence,” he said.

    India also stressed that the international community needs to “walk the talk” by ensuring a predictable and enhanced flow of resources to countries in the post-conflict phase.

    The developmental assistance in line with the national priorities should go a long way towards sustainable peace.

    Further, he said it is important to actively support the post-conflict reconstruction agenda, particularly in Africa and in this regard, the UN Peacebuilding Commission’s efforts should be strengthened.

    “These efforts should include prioritising the needs of the host state and coordinating the role of international financial institutions, the private sector and civil society organisations,” Singh said.

    Singh noted that some regional and sub-regional organisations have become more capable of addressing the conflict situations and member states have reposed faith increasingly in their capacity, bringing positive synergy to the actions of the UN and Security Council.

    “The Security Council has the responsibility to support this trend and encourage and enable those regional and sub-regional organisations,” he said adding that India believes the existing framework of cooperation such as the Joint UN-AU Framework for an enhanced partnership in Peace and Security needs to be implemented more proactively.

    Initiatives such as AMISOM, G-5 Sahel Joint Force and Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) need more robust support from the Security Council and the international community.

  • Pay closer attention to ‘illicit proliferation’ of networks of N-weapons, India tells UNSC

    By PTI

    UNITED NATIONS: India on Monday underlined the need for the international community to pay closer attention to the ‘illicit proliferation’ of networks of nuclear weapons, their delivery systems, components and relevant technologies, in an apparent reference to the nexus between China and Pakistan.

    Addressing the UN Security Council Briefing on Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, held under the Irish Presidency, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla told the Council that India has actively supported and contributed to the strengthening of the global nuclear security architecture.

    There is a need for the international community to pay closer attention to the illicit proliferation of networks of nuclear weapons, their delivery systems, components and relevant technologies, he said.

    Shringla’s remarks appeared to be a veiled reference to China and its “all-weather ally” Pakistan as concerns have been raised over the export of nuclear materials to Islamabad by Beijing and that they are in violation of international norms and established procedures.

    US think tank Arms Control Association had said in one of its reports that China’s nuclear cooperation with Pakistan was in contravention with the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

    Shringla told the Council that India is committed to the goal of a nuclear weapons-free world and complete elimination of nuclear weapons, consistent with the highest priority accorded to nuclear disarmament by the Final Document of the First Special Session of the UN General Assembly on Disarmament (SSOD-I). “India maintains a voluntary, unilateral moratorium on nuclear explosive testing,” Shringla said.

    He said India believes this goal can be achieved through a step-by-step process underwritten by a universal commitment and an agreed global and non-discriminatory multilateral framework, as outlined in India’s Working Paper on Nuclear Disarmament submitted to the UN General Assembly in 2006.

    India participated in the Nuclear Security Summit process and has regularly participated in the International Conferences on Nuclear Security organised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

    India is also a member of the Nuclear Security Contact Group.

    “Without prejudice to the priority we attach to nuclear disarmament, India has expressed its readiness to support the commencement of negotiations on a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT)” in the Conference on Disarmament on the basis of the mandate contained in CD/1299, Shringla said, adding that in this context, India has also participated in the work of the Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on FMCT and the High-level Expert Preparatory Group (HLEPG) on FMCT.

    As per the CD/1299, the Conference on Disarmament decides to establish an ad hoc committee on a “ban on the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices”.

    The Conference directs the Ad Hoc Committee to negotiate a non-discriminatory, multilateral and internationally and effectively verifiable treaty banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.

    Shringla said India has played a leading role in global efforts towards nuclear disarmament and was the first country to call for a ban on nuclear testing in 1954 and a non-discriminatory treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, as distinct from non-dissemination, in 1965.

    While India had participated in the negotiations of the draft Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) in the Conference on Disarmament, New Delhi could not join the Treaty as the Treaty did not address a number of core concerns raised by India, he said.

    He said India would continue to work in the framework of the Disarmament Triad comprising the Conference on Disarmament, the UN Disarmament Commission and the First Committee of the UN General Assembly, to strengthen the nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation architecture.

    As the world’s sole multilateral disarmament negotiating forum, the Conference on Disarmament is well placed to advance the global disarmament agenda and negotiate legally binding instruments on items on its core agenda, he said.

    India has also contributed to the GGE on Nuclear Disarmament Verification through its membership of the earlier and the current Group of Governmental Experts which will meet later this year in Geneva.

    India is a key partner in the global non-proliferation efforts, Shringla said, adding that one of the important steps undertaken by New Delhi in this context is the piloting of an annual UN General Assembly Resolution on “Measures to Prevent Terrorists from Acquiring Weapons of Mass Destruction” since 2002, which is adopted by consensus.

    “We hope that the international community will continue to work towards realising our collective aspiration for a nuclear weapon-free world,” he said.

  • ‘We must fight terrorism together’, says Tirumurti on 20th anniversary of 9/11 terror attack

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: On the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attack, India’s Permanent Representative to United Nations TS Tirumurti on Thursday (local time) said the world must fight against terrorism together as there are no bad or good terrorists.

    Taking to Twitter, he said “there are no your terrorists, my terrorists, bad terrorists or good terrorists. Must fight it together.”

    Tirumurti along with representatives of UN Security Council (UNSC) member countries paid homage at the National September 11 Memorial in New York on the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attack.

    “A moving experience at Ground Zero in New York on 20th Anniversary of 9/11 Terror attack UNSC paid homage at @Sept11Memorial to lives lost, including many Indians There are no “your terrorists” & “my terrorists” or “bad terrorists” & “good terrorists.” Must fight it together,” he tweeted.

    On September 11, 2001, the United States faced the deadliest terrorist attack in its history, in which over 3,000 people were killed. Within a span of just 102 minutes, both towers of the New York World Trade Center collapsed after planes hijacked by Al Qaeda operatives crashed into them.