Seoul/Kuwait City/Paris, May 26: All-party parliamentary delegations Monday briefed leaders of South Korea, Kuwait, Qatar, DR Congo and Slovenia on India’s renewed doctrine of responding firmly to any act of terrorism and sought their support in bringing to justice the perpetrators, financiers and supporters of terrorism.
A nine-member delegation, led by JD(U) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha, met South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, 1st Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong Kyun and Sung Il-jong, Chairperson of the National Defence Committee of the National Assembly, in Seoul and conveyed India’s national resolve on zero-tolerance policy in combatting terrorism.
The delegation “sought RoK’s support in holding organisers, perpetrators, financiers and supporters of terrorism to account and bringing them to justice,” the Embassy of India in Seoul said in a post on X.
In Kuwait City, the delegation, led by BJP MP Baijayant Jay Panda, called on Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sherida A S Al-Maousharji and apprised him of India’s recent actions to combat cross-border terrorism.
“Both sides reaffirmed their #ZeroTolerance approach to terrorism,” the Embassy of India in Kuwait said in a post on X.
The delegation, which arrived in Kuwait City from Bahrain, also offered floral tributes at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the Embassy and visited the Grand Mosque of Kuwait, the largest mosque in the Gulf country built over four decades ago.
In Qatar, the Indian delegation, led by NCP-SP leader Supriya Sule, met Minister of State for Interior Affairs Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Faisal bin Mohammed Al Thani and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohamed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh Al Khulaifi.
“Al Khulaifi conveyed Qatar’s solidarity with India and policy of zero tolerance against terrorism for regional stability and prosperity,” the Indian Embassy in Doha said in a post.
MoS for Interior Affairs Sheikh Abdulaziz appreciated the visit of the delegation and reiterated Qatar’s firm stance against terrorism, it added.
Qatar is considered to wield influence in the West Asian region and has a role as a mediator in regional conflicts.
In Slovenia, the Indian delegation led by DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi on Monday called on senior officials in Ljubljana and emphasised India’s “new normal” of zero tolerance against cross-border terrorism.
The delegation met Vojko Volk, State Secretary and National Coordinator for National and International Security in the Prime Minister’s Office; Predrag Bakovic, Chairperson of the Foreign Policy Committee of the National Assembly; and Miroslav Gregoric of the India-Slovenia Parliamentary Friendship Group.
The Slovenian side reaffirmed its condemnation of terrorism as “pure evil that cannot be justified in any form,” the Indian embassy in Ljubljana said in a post on X.
In Georgetown, Guyana’s Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo and Prime Minister Mark Phillips reiterated their country’s unwavering support to India‘s fight against terrorism, as an all-party parliamentary delegation led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor met them on Sunday to brief them on India‘s position on the issue.
Prime Minister Phillips hosted the Indian all-party parliamentary delegation in Berbice on the eve of Guyana’s 59th Independence Day.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, an all-party delegation led by Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde held a “fruitful meeting” with Minister of State of Foreign Affairs Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner on Monday, the India mission in Kinshasa said.
The delegation conveyed India’s zero tolerance for terrorism and thanked her for the support and solidarity in the fight against terrorism it added.
In France, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said India wants peace and amity but not at the cost of innocent Indians, and the world must speak in one voice as far as barbaric state-sponsored terrorism is concerned, as an all-party delegation led by him began its six-country Europe tour.
“And if in the most barbaric manner, Pahalgam happens, there will be a cost to it, and the whole world needs to speak in one voice as far as terrorism is concerned. It’s a global menace, a global cancer,” he said.
The delegation will be engaging with members of the Senate and National Assembly, think tanks and a cross-section of the Indian diaspora during the opening leg of their visit to France.
In Seoul, Chairperson Sung “emphasised that any act of terrorism is a crime against humanity and can not be condoned,” the Indian mission in Seoul said.
Foreign Minister Cho, who dropped briefly during the delegation’s meeting with 1st Vice Foreign Minister, reaffirmed South Korea’s “strong stance against terrorism and extended support to India’s fight against this menace,” it added.
The delegation also interacted with senior representatives of leading think tanks, corporate policy groups, leading media houses and India Studies Centres in South Korea. The delegation also highlighted India’s ‘No First Use Policy’ and rejection of any nuclear blackmail. (PTI)
