Modi’s aggressive policies have brought Kashmir to world focus
Once again, China has blocked the proposal to put Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Masood Azhar’s name on the UN list of global terrorists. In 2016 the move had come in the wake of the Pathankot terrorist attack and in 2017 months after the Uri attack .This time the move was made after the Pulwama attack.
In 2016 and 2017 two attempts were made each year by India, supported by the USA, UK and France, with China blocking them repeatedly. In 2016 the position taken by Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Li Baodong was that India was trying to politicize the issu eto make political gains in the name of counter-terrorism. In 2017 China maintained India had produced no solid evidence. On both occasions Beijing had suggested that the issue be resolved through Pak-India talks. This year China has taken a more comprehensive stand with important connotations.
At a prèss briefing in Beijing early this month, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang maintained that there were complex factors underlying the emergence of terrorism, and to eradicate terrorism there was a need to treat both symptoms and root causes. This required more time for deliberations. On Thursday, Kang stressed the need to focus on the Kashmir issue that had been left over by history between India and Pakistan and hoped that the two countries would engage in friendly dialogue and consultation to resolve this and other outstanding issues.
There is a growing perception that Indian adventurism at Balakot and the quick response from Pakistan led many countries to conclude that incidents of the sort could lead to a nuclear confrontation unless Pakistan and India resolved their differences. This led to quiet diplomacy bringing the USA, Russia, China and the Gulf states to persuade both sides to end hostilities and move forward to settle their disputes. As all knew what the core issue was, for the time being at least the Kashmir issue was internationalised.
The blocking of the proposal is a setback for India. It has deprived the BJP government of a diplomatic victory. If the proposal was adopted, the BJP would have used it as an evidence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political acumen. With China putting it on hold, the Indian Foreign Ministry has expressed disappointment.
