Kerry said that to fight organisations like the Islamic State group, al Qaeda, Lashkar-e-Taiba or Jaish-e-Mohammad, the world needs to unite and work as a team. We are working on it. “I salute you for being here and thank you very very much”, he said. He said had spoken to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif about the need for his country to deprive any group of “sanctuary”.
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The US also fully backed India on its demand that Pakistan should act against terrorists operating from sanctuaries on its soil with US Secretary of State John Kerry asserting that his country “stands in strong partnership with India” against all terrorism.
He said that despite being delayed for events and having to cancel few meetings due to inclement weather, Mr Kerry had a “terrific couple of days” in New Delhi.
“Strengthening Indo-US relations is a top priority for the United States”. U.S. stands with India on all matters of terrorism, no matter where it comes from. He further said, both countries are the two largest democracies in the world bound with common values of tolerance, equality, respect for religious pluralism and peace. Praising his host country, Kerry said a rising India will play a critical role in resolving challenges posed by poverty and terrorism. Kerry, whose official engagements here ended with a call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the afternoon, was scheduled to leave at 5.30pm, but he may now leave either on Friday or Saturday for China where he will join President Barack Obama for the G-20 summit, reports PTI. This is perhaps in Indian DNA.
Speaking on the India-US counterterrorism cooperation, Kerry said that no one nation could alone counter and defeat the extremists.
He also said Islamabad should not feel isolated by the upcoming talks between the U.S., India and Afghanistan in NY.
He said that United States will soon make the promise made by more than 190 nations at the Paris Climate change summit previous year a “reality” by officially joining the global climate agreement.
Kerry said there can not be distinction between good and bad terrorists as terror is terror no matter where it emanates from or who carries it out.
Echoing the Indian foreign minister’s remark, Kerry also said that the USA can’t and won’t make a distinction between good and bad terrorists.
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Towards the end of his speech, Kerry shifted focus to climate change and on coming up with the solution of policy change to combat the same.
