The US and India have asked Pakistan to take “immediate, sustained, and irreversible action” to ensure that no territory under its control is used for terrorist attacks against any other country.
They released the statement at the end of the “Fourth Annual US-India 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue” between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden in Washington on April 11.
They also called for the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai attack and the Pathankot attack to be brought to justice. The 26/11 attack was a reference to the rampages by ten terrorists on a railway station, two luxury hotels, and a Jewish centre on November 26, 2008, in which as many as 166 people were killed.
Read more: Indian state sponsored terrorism and false flag operation
Whereas the Pathankot attack was a reference to an assault by a handful of gunmen on India’s sprawling airbase in Punjab, starting January 2, 2016, which had left seven security personnel and one civilian dead.
Both attacks were blamed on “terrorist groups based in Pakistan,” a claim Islamabad has denied. New Delhi has frequently accused Islamabad of harbouring terrorists.
The two sides called for concerted action against all terrorist groups, including al Qaeda, ISIS/Da’ish, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and Hizbul Mujahideen.
The ministers committed to the continued exchange of information about sanctions and designations against terror groups and individuals.
The US-India 2+2 Joint Statement is 4,315 words long
Pakistan appears in it once. Which is once too many.
US authorities continuing to offer these throwaway reference concessions to India reflects strategic recklessness. https://t.co/MdXGs1hLen
— Mosharraf Zaidi (@mosharrafzaidi) April 13, 2022
“The ministers also emphasised the importance of upholding international standards on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism by all countries, consistent with FATF recommendations,” the statement reads.
US “monitoring” Human Rights abuse in India
Earlier, Secretary of State Blinken said the US was monitoring what he described as a rise in human rights abuses in India by some officials, in a rare direct rebuke by Washington of the Asian nation’s rights record.
Blinken’s remarks came days after US Representative Ilhan Omar questioned the alleged reluctance of the US government to criticise Modi’s government on human rights.
Read more: US-India 2+2 Talks: Brilliant, Good, Bad & Ugly!
The Hindu nationalist BJP party has fostered religious polarisation since coming to power in 2014 as right-wing Hindu groups have launched widespread attacks on minorities, especially Muslims.
Us tells India to avoid relying on Russian oil
At their virtual meeting, President Biden told Premier Modi that buying more oil from Russia was not in India’s interest and could hamper the US response to the war in Ukraine, US officials said. An official said Biden told Modi India’s position in the world would not be enhanced by relying on Russian energy sources, US officials said.
Unlike other members of the Quad countries, the US, Japan, and Australia, India has not imposed sanctions on Russia.
Read more: India buying cheap Russian oil: Why can’t Pakistan?
Lured by steep discounts following Western sanctions on Russian entities, India has bought at least 13 million barrels of Russian crude oil since the invasion in late February. According to Reuters, that compared with some 16 million barrels for the whole of last year.
White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said Washington stands ready to help the country diversify its energy sources.