The Biden administration has reaffirmed its commitment to support India's permanent membership in a reformed UN Security Council and New Delhi's entry to the Nuclear Suppliers' Group.
A change in the name of the Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) magazine 'suggests a refocusing' of the terror group from Afghanistan to Kashmir, a United Nations report has said.
A special court in Mumbai on Saturday remanded ICICI Bank's former CEO and MD Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar in the custody of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) till December 26 in connection with alleged cheating and irregularities in loans sanctioned by the bank to Videocon Group companies. The Kochhars were arrested by the probe agency on Friday night after a brief questioning session. The CBI has alleged that they were evasive in their response and did not cooperate in the investigation.
Pakistan had submitted the names of Angara Appaji and Gobinda Patnaik for designation under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council.
It is alleged that during the tenure of Chanda Kochhar, six loans worth Rs 1,875 crore were cleared for the Videocon Group and its associated companies, in which in two cases she herself was on the sanctioning committees.
Asked whether India offered something to China for Azhar's listing, he asserted that India doesn't negotiate on matters related to national security. "Our objective was to ensure designation of Masood Azhar as global terrorist," he said.
The proposal is the fourth such bid at the UN in the last 10 years to list Azhar as a global terrorist.
In his address to the high-level UN General Assembly session, Jaishankar said those who politicise the UNSC 1267 Sanctions regime, sometimes even to the extent of defending proclaimed terrorists, do so at their own peril.
The UNSC meeting also focussed on the 15th report of the Secretary-General on the threat posed by ISIL (Da'esh) to international peace and security and the range of United Nations efforts in support of member states in countering the threat.
IS-Khorasan was sanctioned for its links with Al Qaeda and involvement in several deadly attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan that killed over 150 people.
Multilateral platforms are being misused to justify and protect perpetrators of terrorism, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said
The demand for action by Pakistan was made through a joint statement issued after the 2+2 ministerial attended by the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says China 'protects' violent Islamic terror groups from UN sanctions.
India believes "terrorism is a major issue for China. They know a number of terror groups are based in Pakistan", sources added.
'The opposition party was disappointed that the UN listing does not mention the Pulwama terror attack, in which 40 CRPF personnel lost their lives, and has no reference to Jammu and Kashmir'
A UNSC designation will subject Azhar to an assets freeze, travel ban and an arms embargo.
"Time has come for Pakistan to decide in its own interests. We will do what's in Pakistan's interests," Qureshi told Geo TV in an interview.
He said despite efforts by the UN, the threat of terrorism is only growing and expanding, particularly in Asia and Africa.
In Chanda's defence, one can always say, why would the Videocon Group take care of her husband as a quid pro quo to get a loan? After all, the group has taken money from the entire banking industry and ICICI Bank's share in the pie is not even 10 per cent. So, if it had a quid pro quo with Chanda to get the money, it must have had similar arrangements with other banks, too. If this is not the case, one must accept that it had got money from all banks, including ICICI, without any under-the-table conditions, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
As it has done in the past, Beijing put a technical hold on the proposal just as the deadline was about to end.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said that Washington's move only complicates the issue.
China, a veto-wielding member of the UNSC, has blocked the move by India and other member nations three times in the past to designate Azhar.
The sanctions list subjected him to a travel ban, assets freeze and an arms embargo.
Pak rejected the world body's move as a "victory for India and validation of its stance" as projected by the Indian media.
On March 15, France imposed financial sanctions on Azhar.
'Congrats to our team @USUN for their work in negotiating JEM's Masood Azhar's #UN designation as a terrorist,' Pompeo tweeted.
India has formally approached the United Nations to include Jaish-e-Mohammad chief and Pathankot terror attack mastermind Masood Azhar in the Security Council's sanctions list, strongly emphasising the urgency to take action against him.
Specially designated global terrorist Sirajuddin Haqqani, who carries a reward of $10 million US bounty on his head, is the acting interior minister while his uncle -- Khalil Haqqani -- has been named as acting minister for refugees.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken up with Chinese leadership India's concerns over China blocking its move in the UN for action against Pakistan over release of 26/11 mastermind and LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi in violation of a resolution of the world body.
India believes no country would emerge victorious in the Russia-Ukraine war as all will suffer losses and there will be a "more serious" impact on developing and poor countries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday after holding talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as both leaders reiterated the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
The two leaders reaffirmed that the United States and India 'will take concerted action against all terrorist groups, including groups proscribed by the UNSCR 1267 Sanctions Committee'.
India will continue to work with like-minded countries to fight terrorism, the MEA spokesperson said.
He said China understands India's concerns over the issue.
The sources said Modi's pre-recorded video statement is expected to be broadcast at the UN General Assembly hall in New York around 9 am local time (6.30 pm IST) and added that he is scheduled as the first speaker in the forenoon.
"The United States and China share a mutual interest in achieving regional stability and peace, and that a failure to designate Azhar would run counter to this goal," State Department Deputy Spokesperson Robert Palladino said in response to a question on previous successful attempts by China to block the UN designation of Azhar
The UN decision came after India provided detailed evidence about Saeed's activities.
China has blocked India's move in the UN demanding action against Pakistan over the release of Mumbai attack mastermind and LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi in violation of a resolution of the world body as it contended that India provided insufficient information.
"If we have to recognise a government, the first thing is that we will need to wait until the government is formed," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said.
Lakhvi, who was on bail since 2015 in the Mumbai attack case, was arrested by the Counter-Terrorism Department.
China was the sole member in the 15-nation UN organ to put a hold on India's application with the rest 14 members of the Council supporting New Delhi's bid to place Azhar on the 1267 sanctions list that would subject him to an assets freeze and travel ban.
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