World considers Pakistan as "epicentre" of terrorism, claims EAM Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on December 15 slammed Pakistan after its Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari unceremoniously raked up the issue of Kashmir during a UN gathering in New York to discuss the issue of multilateralism.
Jaishankar said the credibility of the UN depends on its effective response to the key challenges of our time be it pandemic, climate change, conflicts or terrorism.

The world sees Pakistan as the “epicentre of terrorism” and it should clean up its act and try to be a good neighbour, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said, asserting that the world has not forgotten where the menace stems from.
He also recalled former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s blunt message to Islamabad that snakes in one’s backyard will eventually bite those who keep them.

Jaishankar was addressing reporters on December 15 at the UN headquarters after chairing a signature event held under India’s presidency of the Security Council on Global Counterterrorism Approach: Challenges and Way Forward.’

Responding to a question on Pakistan Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar’s recent statements about a “dossier” and allegations against India, he said, “I saw, I read the reports on what minister Khar said. And I was reminded, more than a decade ago, my memory serves me right. Hillary Clinton was visiting Pakistan. And Hina Rabbani Khar was a minister at that time.

When asked by a Pakistani journalist how long South Asia is going to see terrorism disseminating from New Delhi, Kabul and Pakistan, Jaishankar said, “You know, you’re asking the wrong minister when you say how long will we do this? Because it is the ministers of Pakistan who will tell you how long Pakistan intends to practice terrorism.”

“At the end of the day, the world is not stupid, the world is not forgetful. And the world does increasingly call out countries and organisations and people who indulge in terrorism,” he said.