New Delhi, 27 June 2025:
At the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meeting in Qingdao, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar supported Defense Minister Rajnath Singh's action by claiming that India declined to sign the joint communique after "one country" objected to a mention of terrorism.
"The SCO was formed with the objective of fighting terrorism," Jaishankar stated during a press conference held in New Delhi on Friday.One nation stated they did not want a reference to that when Rajnath Singh attended the meeting. Therefore, Rajnathji made it clear that we would not sign the statement if it made no reference to terrorism.
India had pushed for specific reference to the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, which claimed the lives of 26 civilians, primarily tourists, at the SCO defense ministers' conclave. According to reports, Pakistan objected to the reference, and when agreement could not be reached, the communique was withheld. Ministers from Pakistan and India shared a platform without releasing a joint statement for the first time in years. India refused to endorse the document because, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), it did not adequately reflect "India's concerns on terrorism" due to its lack of strong language acknowledging terrorism.
In reference to Lashkar-e-Taiba and The Resistance Front's role in the Pahalgam strike, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had issued a warning that "terror epicentres are no longer safe and India will target them." "When an outcome document leaves out terrorism, it loses its central purpose," Jaishankar reaffirmed India's vision for the SCO as a platform against terrorism. He emphasized that India would not budge on this principle. New Delhi's tough diplomatic posture ahead of the SCO heads-of-state summit in the fall is indicated by this firm stance. According to analysts, India is taking the lead in determining the organization's strategic goals for counterterrorism and security.
China, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, and a number of Central Asian states are members of the SCO. Jaishankar's comments demonstrate India's willingness to hold the group to its original purpose, even if doing so means obstructing consensus. India's insistence on addressing terrorism at the SCO sets a clear agenda as the world awaits the leaders' summit: multilateral agreements must directly address security challenges rather than sidestep them.
