SCO meeting: Only one issue to discuss on Kashmir and it's PoK, says Jaishankar

On a question on abrogation of Article 370, EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, "...wake up and smell the coffee. 370 is history. The sooner people realise it, the better it is." READ MORE

On Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's "Let's not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring," statement, EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, "...We are not scoring diplomatic points. We are politically and diplomatically exposing Pakistan before the world. As a victim of terrorism, I am completely entitled to do so...You not only commit terrorism, but you also say please do not even speak about it...To me, it speaks so much about the mindset of that country..."

"I said they (Pakistan) have nothing to do with G20. I will also say that they have nothing to do with Srinagar. There is only one issue to discuss on Kashmir which is when does Pakistan vacate its illegal occupation of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir," EAM Dr S Jaishankar said at the conclusion of the SCO Foreign Ministers' meeting.

On Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's arrival in India, EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, "He came here as the Foreign Minister of an SCO Member State. That is part of multilateral diplomacy. Don't see it as anything more than that. I think that nothing from what he said or what I heard he said deserves for this to be treated more than that."

Victims of terrorism do not sit together with perpetrators of terrorism to discuss terrorism. Victims of terrorism defend themselves, counter acts of terrorism, they call it out, they legitimise it and that is exactly what is happening. To come here & preach these hypocritical words as though we are on the same boat, Jaishankar said on a question on India-Pakistan ties, including a question from Pakistani journalist.

"They are committing acts of terrorism. I don't want to jump the gun on what happened today but we are all feeling equally outraged. On this matter, the terrorism matter, I would say that Pakistan's credibility is depleting faster than even its Forex reserves," Jaishankar added.

"As a Foreign Minister of an SCO member state, Mr Bhutto Zardari was treated accordingly. As a promoter, justifier and spokesperson of a terrorism industry which is the mainstay of Pakistan, his positions were called out and countered including at the SCO meeting itself," Jaishankar mentioned.

On his bilateral meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa, EAM Dr S Jaishankar, says, "...we exchanged views on a number of regional, global developments..."

During the meeting, the SCO Foreign Ministers assessed the status of decisions that will be approved at the upcoming SCO Summit in July. The meeting also gave an opportunity to dwell on the state of multilateral cooperation in SCO to address regional & global issues of interest, EAM Dr S Jaishankar said after the conclusion of SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa.

The meeting also gave an opportunity to talk about the reform & modernisation of the organisation & assess the progress of admitting Iran and Belarus to SCO as new Member States, he added.

EAM Dr S Jaishankar and Kyrgyzstan's Foreign Minister Jeenbek Kulubaev hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa.

India and Pakistan on Friday took a veiled swipe at each other at a SCO meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar demanding tough action against cross-border terrorism and his Pakistani counterpart Bilawal Bhutto Zardari calling for not getting caught up in "weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point-scoring".

In his address at the meeting of the foreign ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), Jaishankar said the channel of finances for terror activities must be blocked without any distinction even as Bhutto Zardari raised the issue of "violation of international law" which was seen as an apparent reference to Kashmir.

The SCO norms do not allow raking up bilateral issues and the two foreign ministers did not name any country and made the comments indirectly.

External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar on Friday sought the support of members to make English the third official language of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

Currently, Russian and Mandarin are used as official and working languages. He said that constructive steps are needed in this regard.

Jaishankar said that India has initiated an unprecedented engagement with SCO observers and dialogue partners by inviting them to participate in more than 14 social-cultural events.

Sources informed that the foreign ministers of the SCO member countries are likely to finalise in the day a set of 15 decisions or proposals for the consideration of the grouping's summit in July.

As for the rupees, this is a problem. We accumulated billion of rupees in Indian bank accounts but to use this money it needs to be transferred to another currency and this is being discussed now, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Rupee-Rouble talks on the sidelines of the SCO summit.

"If you think as soon as US and Ukraine rejected the accusations, we should stop thinking about the attack that is not the case. The ability of our Ukrainian and Western friends to lie is very well known and the entire situation is illustrating the crisis which is much much deeper than just the behaviour of the regime headed by Zelensky," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responds to US and Ukraine rejecting the drone attack.

FM Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in his keynote address highlighted the importance of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan. "A peaceful and stable Afghanistan is a key not only to regional integration and economic cooperation but also to global peace and stability"

FM Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on unilateral and illegal measures to be a violation of international law and SCO objectives. "Unilateral and illegal measures by states in violation of international law and Security Council resolutions run counter to the SCO objectives". "When great powers play role of peacemaker, we can unlock the potential of peace while paving the way for greater cooperation, regional integration, and economic opportunities for our people

FM Bilawal Bhutto Zardari urged to collectively eradicate the menace of terrorism- "Let’s not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring". In his statement at SCO CFM reiterated Pakistan's commitment to multilateralism for maintaining international peace and harmony. “Pakistan remains committed to multilateralism and continues to play a leading role at all international forums.”

Under our presidency of SCO, we successfully concluded more than 100 meetings and events, including 15 ministerial level meets: Jaishankar.

India attaches great importance to development of multifaceted cooperation in SCO and to promotion of peace, stability: Jaishankar.

The SCO is an influential economic and security bloc and has emerged as one of the largest transregional international organisations. It was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India and Pakistan became its permanent members in 2017. India was made an observer at the SCO in 2005 and has generally participated in the ministerial-level meetings of the grouping, which focus mainly on security and economic cooperation in the Eurasian region. India has shown a keen interest in deepening its security-related cooperation with the SCO and its Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS), which specifically deals with issues relating to security and defence.

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Thursday held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from China, Russia and Uzbekistan on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting here. The two-day-long meeting of Foreign Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states began in Goa on Thursday. India hosted a cultural event on Thursday evening ahead of the main meeting on Friday.

Secretary (Economic Relations) in MEA Dammu Ravi said the acronym SECURE was given by Modi at the 2018 Qingdao summit of the SCO and it will lay down the main focus areas under India's ongoing chairmanship. SECURE stands for Security, Economic development, Connectivity, Unity, Respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and Environmental protection. Under its SCO presidency, India has hosted more than 100 meetings and events. India is emerging as a key player among the SCO countries, though China and Russia are seen as the major drivers of the grouping that is increasingly seen as an "alternative" to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). India is hosting the SCO conclave when its ties with China are under severe strain in view of a lingering border row in eastern Ladakh. People familiar with the preparations for the conclave said the foreign ministers will deliberate on the overall challenges facing the region in the backdrop of the current geopolitical turmoil and the state of bilateral ties between the member nations would not impact the discussions.

"The most important work before the SCO foreign ministers will be to assess the status of the decisions that will be approved at the SCO summit in New Delhi in July," Secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Dammu Ravi told reporters. "The meeting will also give an opportunity to discuss the state of multilateral cooperation in the SCO, regional and global issues of interest, reform and modernisation of the organisation and the progress of admitting Iran and Belarus to the SCO as new member states," he said. "As you are aware, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has articulated India's priorities for the SCO chair with the theme of 'Towards a SECURE SCO'," Ravi said.

The people also said a proposal on settlement of trade in national currencies by the SCO member countries is also part of the overall agenda of the grouping to boost cooperation. The SCO foreign ministers are also expected to deliberate on pressing global issues, including the Ukraine crisis and the situation in Afghanistan.

The SCO Council of Foreign Ministers' meeting at the sea-side Taj Exotica resort in Goa's Benaulim will be chaired by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Russia's Sergey Lavrov, Pakistan's Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Uzbekistan's Bakhtiyor Saidov are among those who have already arrived in Goa to attend the meeting. The people cited above said Friday's meeting is expected to finalise agreements for the inclusion of Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Myanmar and the Maldives as dialogue partners in the SCO. The process to admit Iran and Belarus as full members of the grouping is reaching its final stage, they said.

Foreign ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member countries will finalise in their deliberations today (May 5) a set of 15 decisions or proposals for the consideration of the grouping's summit in July, people familiar with the matter said. The proposals are aimed at expanding cooperation among the SCO member countries in the areas of trade, technology, commerce, security and socio-cultural ties.