Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to confront countries that use terrorism as an instrument of state policy and to reject “double standards” in dealing with the threat. At the summit, he also said dialogue and diplomacy were the only way forward to resolve global conflicts.
Speaking in the presence of Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders, Modi called for decisive action against the full terror ecosystem. The Bishkek Declaration adopted at the end of the summit also underlined the need to resist the use of terrorist, separatist and extremist groups for selfish purposes, and backed political and diplomatic efforts to address tensions in West Asia.
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In his speech, Modi said terrorism continued to pose a serious challenge to humanity and added, “In the fight against terrorism, we cannot remain confined to an action-reaction approach.” He said, “We must dismantle the entire ecosystem of terrorist financing, recruitment, radicalisation, and safe havens. We must speak with one voice and make it clear that there can be no place for double standards on this serious issue.”
He added, “We must send a strong message to countries that use terrorism as an instrument of policy and provide safe haven and support to terrorists that terrorism can never be a strategic asset for anyone.” The declaration also stressed that attempts to exploit terrorist, separatist and extremist groups for selfish purposes were inadmissible, strongly condemned all forms of terrorism, said “double standards” in combating terrorism were unacceptable, and urged the international community to combat terrorism, including the cross-border movement of terrorists.
On West Asia, Modi said the crisis showed that a conflict in one region did not remain confined there. “Its impact is felt across the world, affecting energy security, maritime trade, and supply chains. The countries of the Global South bear the greatest brunt of such disruptions,” he said. “Therefore, India has consistently called for all tensions and conflicts to be resolved not on the battlefield, but through dialogue and diplomacy,” he added.
The Bishkek Declaration expressed deep concern over developments in the Middle East and reiterated the SCO’s condemnation of military strikes on Iran. The member states also expressed condolences to Iran on the death of Supreme Leader Seyyed Ali Khamenei. Supporting Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the declaration backed a resolution of the conflict “solely through political and diplomatic means” and welcomed all efforts aimed at de-escalation. It added, “Member States note that the only possible way to ensure peace and stability in the Middle East is a comprehensive and just settlement of the Palestinian question.”
Modi also linked peace in Eurasia to stability in Afghanistan. “Our shared aspiration for a peaceful and secure Eurasia is also closely linked to peace and stability in Afghanistan. India has been contributing to the development and provision of humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan and will continue to do so,” he said.
On connectivity, Modi said India supported efforts that connected markets, facilitated trade and opened new avenues for development, but added that such projects must respect sovereignty and territorial integrity. In an apparent reference to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, he said, “However, it is equally essential that such efforts respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries. This is also the fundamental spirit of the SCO Charter.” India has been critical of the BRI because a part of it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
He said the scope of connectivity would widen further and called for simpler customs processes, greater digital documentation and more efficient logistics networks alongside roads, railways and air corridors. Modi said his address was based on the three pillars of security, connectivity and opportunity that he had proposed for India’s vision for the SCO at the previous summit. “The time has come to move these three pillars beyond vision and translate them into concrete outcomes. The first and foremost requirement for this is peace and security,” he said.
The prime minister said SCO cooperation should directly benefit people. “Our greatest strength is the connections between our people. For India, the SCO is a confluence of great civilisations, cultures, and ideas. Over the next twenty-five years of the SCO, people-to-people ties should remain at the heart of our cooperation,” he said. He added, “The true measure of our success should be how many new opportunities our efforts create for young people, how many new markets open up for our entrepreneurs, how much our farmers benefit from technology, and how much better the lives of our citizens become.”
The summit reviewed progress on the 25th anniversary of the grouping and discussed ways to strengthen its role in peace, security, stability and prosperity in the region. Modi said the anniversary was an opportunity to prepare a roadmap for the next 25 years. Along with the Bishkek Declaration, the summit adopted four memorandums of understanding and more than 20 decisions and statements covering climate, nuclear safety, energy conservation and combating drug addiction.
The leaders also adopted decisions on joint initiatives to combat drug addiction and the spread of synthetic drugs and their precursors until 2030, conservation and sustainable management of biodiversity, and scientific cooperation programmes for 2026-2030 to create the SCO Green Technology Corridor. They approved regulations on the SCO Universal Centre for Countering Security, an action plan for developing ports and logistics centres of SCO states for 2026-2030, and a move to establish regional data centres and computing capacities and develop the artificial intelligence industry.
Overall, Modi used the SCO summit to press for a united stand against terrorism, call for diplomacy in resolving conflicts, and push for connectivity and cooperation that respect sovereignty, while the summit declaration and other decisions reflected the bloc’s positions on security, West Asia and regional cooperation.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
