NSA Doval Raps China And Pakistan At Key SCO Meeting

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval on Wednesday (29 March) said members of the Shanghai Cooperation Agreement (SCO) should respect the territorial integrity and not seek unilateral military superiority in adjacent regions in an apparent dig at China.

Doval was addressing the 18th meeting of the Secretaries of Security Council of SCO member states.

He also emphasized the need for connectivity projects to be consultative and transparent and raised the issue of global terrorism.

Notably, India is not a part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and has vehemently opposed the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (C-PEC), which passes through the Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK).

NSA Doval called upon the SCO Charter to point out that member states should have “mutual respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity of states and inviolability of state borders, non-use of force or threat of its use in international relations and seeking no unilateral military superiority in adjacent areas.”

His remarks came in the backdrop of the ongoing Line of Actual Control (LAC) stand-off between India and China in the Ladakh and Arunachal sectors.

NSA Doval also raised the issue of terrorism and its financing as among the most serious threats to global peace and security and that all acts of terror, regardless of motivation, are unjustifiable.

He also called for all countries to fulfill their obligations under the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions 1267 and 1373. China has been clocking the listing of Pakistan-based terror groups by the UNSC 1267 sanctions committee.

Both China and Pakistan participated virtually, while the Russian Minister and top officials of other member states were present in-person for the meeting.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is an intergovernmental organization established in 2001, comprising of eight member states, namely India, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan.

India holds the presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation this year and will host the summit in July.

It was only at the SCO Summit last year, that Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the call that “this is not an era of war”.