There Should Be No Double Standards On Terrorism: PM Modi At SCO Summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that there should be no "double standards" when it comes to terrorism.

At the virtual Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meet, PM Modi said that terrorism is a threat to regional and global peace and the SCO members should not hesitate to criticise it.

"Terrorism is a threat to regional and global peace. We will have to fight against terrorism...Some countries use cross-border terrorism as an instrument of their policies and give shelter to terrorists. SCO should not hesitate to criticize such countries. SCO countries should condemn it. There should be no double standards on terrorism," he said With Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin listening.

He also highlighted that the situation in Afghanistan has had a direct impact on the security of all of the SCO countries. "India's concerns and expectations regarding Afghanistan are the same as most of the SCO Member countries. We have to make united efforts for the welfare of the people of Afghanistan...It is important that the land of Afghanistan is not used to spread unrest in neighbouring nations or promote extremist ideologies," PM Modi added.

He stated that India does not see the SCO as an extended neighbourhood, but rather as an extended family. Security, economic development, connectivity, unity, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and environmental protection are the pillars of our vision for SCO, he stated.

"India has established five pillars of cooperation within the SCO: Startup and innovation, traditional medicine, youth empowerment, digital inclusion, and shared Buddhist heritage. Over the past two decades, the SCO has emerged as an important platform for peace, prosperity and development in the entire Eurasia region. India's thousands of years old cultural and people-to-people ties with this region are living testimony to our shared heritage," he added.

The Prime Minister also touched upon the global food, fuel and fertiliser crisis, highlighted the need for reform of the SCO and welcomed Iran as the new permanent member of the SCO.

The SCO, comprising India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, is an influential economic and security bloc and has emerged as one of the largest transregional international organisations.

India assumed the rotating chairmanship of the SCO at the Samarkand Summit of SCO on September 16 last year.

The SCO was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Pakistan became its permanent member along with India in 2017.