NEW DELHI: Union External Affairs minister S Jaishankar on Friday said India wanted a reference to terrorism in the outcome document of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence ministers’ meeting, but it was not acceptable to one member country, an oblique reference to Pakistan.
Jaishankar said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s view on the matter was right since the main purpose of SCO was to fight terrorism and without a reference on it (on India’s concerns on terrorism), he would not accept the outcome document.
Singh on Thursday refused to sign a joint communique of the SCO following the omission of the Pahalgam terror attack and not explicitly addressing India’s concerns over Pakistan-backed cross-border terrorism.
