Islamabad lashes out after India-US statement on terrorism

A joint statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump calling on Pakistan to ensure its territory is not used to carry out "cross-border terror attacks" has singed Islamabad. Expressing disappointment, Pakistan's Foreign Affairs spokesperson called the reference to the country "one-sided, misleading, and contrary to diplomatic norms".

A joint statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump calling on Pakistan to ensure its territory is not used to carry out "cross-border terror attacks" has singed Islamabad. Expressing disappointment, Pakistan's Foreign Affairs spokesperson called the reference to the country "one-sided, misleading, and contrary to diplomatic norms".

In his weekly briefing, hours after the meeting between PM Modi and Trump in Washington DC, Shafqat Ali Khan said Pakistan was "surprised" by the inclusion of such remarks without acknowledging its sacrifices.

Earlier in the day, India scored a major diplomatic win after Trump agreed to extradite 26/11 terror attack accused Tahawwur Rana to "face justice", a longstanding demand of New Delhi. That Trump announced the decision with PM Modi by his side made it all the sweeter.

"My administration has approved the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, one of the very evil people of the world, to face justice in India," Trump said. Rana, a Canadian national of Pakistani origin, has been kept at a detention centre in Los Angeles.

Trump has already suspended USD 845 million in funding for projects in Pakistan.

The two leaders further needled Pakistan in their joint statement, calling it to "expeditiously bring to justice" the plotters of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, which killed over 165 people.

While thanking Trump for Rana's extradition, PM Modi stressed that "concerted action" was necessary to "eradicate" cross-border terrorism.

The joint statement, interestingly, named terror groups al-Qaida, Islamic State, Jaish-e Mohammad, and Lashkar-e-Taiba as the foremost threat.

"The global scourge of terrorism must be fought, and terrorist safe havens eliminated from every corner of the world," the statement noted.

The two leaders committed to strengthen cooperation against terrorist threats to prevent "heinous acts" like the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai and the 2021 Abbey Gate bombing in Afghanistan. The 2021 suicide bombing at Kabul airport's Abbey Gate killed 13 US Army personnel and 170 Afghan civilians.

The statement further said that the countries would work together to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and deny access to such weapons to terrorists.