New Delhi: In a veiled jibe at Pakistan, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, on Friday, said it was important for countries to stop funding terror organizations.
Swaraj, in her address as the guest-of-honour at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s plenary session, thanked “India’s friends for hearing its voice”.
“If we want to save humanity, then we need to tell nations supporting terror that they need to stop funding terror organizations. This war cannot be won just militarily or diplomatically,” she said in a strongly worded statement at the Abu Dhabi meeting, adding that the world was witnessing the terrible face of terror.
The OIC is an international organization which purports to be the collective voice of the Muslim world and work towards safeguarding the interests of the community. With permanent representatives to the United Nations and the European Union, it has 57 member states.
Swaraj in her plenary address stated that India shares much with the OIC. “We have excellent political ties with many as a result of our economic growth. We share warm ties with our immediate Islamic neighbours like Bangladesh and Afghanistan Presently, Gulf countries are our biggest markets and energy partners,” she said, adding that India had always embraced pluralism.
Swaraj also quoted Guru Nanak, former President APJ Abdul Kalam and said that she came from the land of Mahatma Gandhi—the land of peace. “The choices you (OIC) make have a huge impact on humanity,” she said, adding that India was willing to work with the OIC to spread the message of peace, stability and economic growth.
Just an hour before Swaraj’s speech, Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had announced that his country was going to boycott the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting in Abu Dhabi since external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj was invited as a guest of honour to deliver the inaugural plenary session.
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