IBSA foreign ministers call for action against UN listed Pak-based terror groups LeT, JeM
New York/New Delhi, Sep 26 (Agency) The Foreign Ministers of India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) on Thursday condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and called for concerted actions against all UN listed terrorists and terrorist entities including Al-Qaeda, ISIS/Daesh, and the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), other proxy groups and their facilitators. Meeting on the sidelines of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, and his Brazilian and South African counterparts Mauro Vieira and Ronald Lamola respectively also concurred that terrorism is a global scourge that must be fought and that terrorist safe havens eliminated in every part of the world. They reaffirmed that the fight against terrorism must be carried out with full respect for international law, in particular the Charter of the United Nations and international human rights law.
They called upon the international community to establish a genuinely broad international counter-terrorism framework in accordance with the principles of international law and support the United Nations’ central coordinating role in international counter-terrorism cooperation, a statement said. They recalled the responsibility of all States to prevent and for counter-terrorism, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, the financing of terrorist networks and terrorist actions from their territories. The Ministers reiterated their resolve to step up joint efforts for the expeditious adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the UNGA. With reference to the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, the Ministers noted with concern the escalation of geopolitical tensions and the eruption of conflicts in various parts of the world and emphasized the urgency of re-engaging in the pursuit of peace, in contrast to divisive narratives that only serve to reinforce the current scenario of fragmentation and geopolitical polarization. The Ministers called on all actors involved to promote de-escalation and to foster direct dialogue, so as to create conditions for effective peace.
They assessed relevant proposals of mediation and good offices, including by countries not directly involved, aimed at the peaceful resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy. They emphasized that all states must act consistently with the purposes and principles of the UN charter. The Ministers expressed their deep concern about the dramatic humanitarian situation in Gaza and reiterated their call for an immediate ceasefire and the release of all remaining hostages. The Ministers renewed their commitment to work for the expansion of the Security Council membership to include representation from developing countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America, in both the permanent and non-permanent membership categories for achieving a reformed, representative, equitable, responsive and effective UN Security Council, which is reflective of the contemporary global realities. They supported the legitimate aspiration of African countries to have a permanent presence in the UNSC and supported Brazil’s and India’s endeavours to occupy permanent seats in the Security Council.