Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, the Indian minister of external affairs, levelled “baseless and frivolous” accusations against Pakistan on Wednesday. Pakistani officials described the Indian official’s outburst as a “reflection of mounting frustration” over New Delhi’s failure to demonise and isolate Islamabad.
In a news appearance with his Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg earlier this week in Vienna, the Indian minister threw a subtle jab at Pakistan.
After mentioning the “cross-border practises” of terrorism, Jaishankar added, “Since the epicentre [of terrorism] is located so close to India, naturally, our experiences and insights are useful to others.”
“We spoke on the threats to international peace and security posed by terrorism, including its cross-border practices, violent extremism, radicalisation, and fundamentalism. Their effects cannot be contained within a region especially when they are deeply connected to narcotics, illegal weapons trade, and other forms of international crime. Since the epicentre is located so close to India, naturally our experiences and insights are useful to others,” he claimed.
The same day, in response to the host’s statement that the usage of the word “epicentre” “doesn’t seem very diplomatic,” Jaishankar replied that he “could use even harsher words [for Pakistan] than epicentre” in an interview on programme ZIB 2 on Austria’s public broadcaster ORF.
Mumtaz Zehra Baloch, a spokesperson for the foreign ministry, responded to questions from the media by saying, “Pakistan rejects the baseless and frivolous accusations made by the Indian External Affairs Minister. His latest tirade reflects growing frustration over India’s failure to malign and isolate Pakistan.”
According to her, India has been engaging in a vicious campaign over the past few years to deceive the international community by fabricating stories of victims and spreading obscene anti-Pakistan propaganda.
The official went on to say that India’s ongoing rhetoric against Pakistan cannot mask its open support for terrorism on Pakistani soil or the fact that state-sponsored terrorism is actually present in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK)
