Jaishankar in Ireland: Terrorism a perennial challenge, needs a great deal of commitment to fight it

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday called terrorism a “perennial” problem and said that it can only be solved with a “great deal of resolution and commitment.”

His comments came as he addressed a session called “India’s view of the world” at the University College Dublin in Ireland. “Talking about conflict, perhaps a word on countering terrorism would also be appropriate, particularly as a foreign minister of a country which has long been at the receiving end of terrorist efforts,” he said.

The Indian foreign minister also mentioned the commemorative plaque placed in the village of Ahakista to honour the victims of the Air India aircraft Kanishka bombing that happened off the coast of Ireland in 1985.

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Stressing that conflicts are violent and traumatic, he said, “I do want to make one broad observation about the state of the world, which is difficult to put it very mildly. For a variety of reasons, our attention is normally occupied by, say, conflicts. Conflicts are violent. They’re traumatic. It’s what you read about in the newspaper, you see on the TV, you look at the phones. But there is a lot that is happening which you do not necessarily read about.”

Jaishankar referenced a UN assessment on fundamental development indicators, stating that a year ago, the UN estimated that progress in areas such as health, water, electricity, housing, literacy, and nutrition had reached about 17 per cent of the target set for the decade within the first four years.

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He highlighted the challenges facing the world today, including increasing conflicts, the lingering effects of the pandemic, extreme climate events, and a growing debt crisis that is causing many countries to fall behind in meeting their development goals and basic needs. He emphasized the need for greater efforts at individual, bilateral, and institutional levels to address these pressing issues.

He reiterated India’s stance that differences in this era “cannot and should not be settled on the battlefield.” He called it important to return to dialogue and diplomacy to find ways to settle conflicts.

Jaishankar called India and Ireland “fiercely independent polities.” He stated that the two nations have always been cautious regarding getting involved in politics and found their “own way” of expressing positions and interests in international forums.

With inputs from agencies