Latest news with #EvangelosSekeris
India.com
02-06-2025
- Politics
- India.com
Pakistan Blocking Appointment Of Chairs Of UN Security Council Committees Dealing With Terrorism
United Nations: The UN Security Council committees dealing with terrorism are without chairs halfway through the year because of Pakistan's insistence on getting control of one or more of the three panels. Mainly, the Western countries on the Council have opposed Pakistan becoming the chair of any of the panels – the Counterterrorism Committee, and the committees on sanctions against al-Qaeda and other terrorist actions, and the Taliban, according to diplomatic sources. They said that the countries against Pakistan becoming the chair of any of the committees pointed out that Islamabad had a conflict of interest because it harboured terrorist organisations like the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, and its leaders, and had contentious relations with the Taliban ruling neighbouring Afghanistan. Consensus governs many functions of the Council, and taking advantage of it, Pakistan, an elected member, is able to block the appointment of the chairs of the committees. The discussions about these issues are held informally. Greece's Permanent Representative, Evangelos Sekeris, who was the President of the Council last month, conceded that it has not been possible to agree on the leadership of the panels, and said they were working on proposals for a solution. Without chairs in place for the committees, the country holding the rotating presidency of the Council is the interim head of the panels. If the chairs are not in place, Pakistan, which takes over the rotating presidency of the Council next month, will head the panels in July by default. When India was on the Council from 2020 to 2022, it headed the Counter-Terrorism Committee, and India's Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamboj even arranged for the panel to meet in Mumbai at the sites of the 26/11 terror attacks by Pakistan-based terrorists. Pakistan, which cited India's chairmanship of the Counterterrorism Committee, was ruled out as chair of the panel, the sources said. The 1267 Committee, which gets its name from the Council's resolution and deals with the affiliates of al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, posed a direct conflict of interest for Pakistan, where organisations and individuals sanctioned by it are based. Pakistan is now insisting that it should at least get the chair of the 1988 Taliban Sanctions Committee, named for the number of the 2011 Council resolution on sanctions against the Taliban, according to the sources. Pakistan, which has a contentious relationship with the Taliban, expects to use the chair of the committee – if it gets it - to influence Afghanistan. It could then push for tightening sanctions or loosening them to manipulate the Taliban, which it has accused of giving sanctuary to forces operating against Pakistan. As of now, Pakistan faces an uphill task in trying to clinch the deal because of its conflicts with the Taliban.
Time of India
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
At UNSC Meet, Pakistan Faces Flak for Escalation
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC), at an informal session, pulled up Pakistan for ratcheting up tensions with India through missile tests and nuclear war rhetoric in the aftermath of the terrorist attack in Jammu & Kashmir. Envoys of several member nations affirmed the need for accountability while calling for de-escalation between the posed 'tough questions' to Pakistan at a closeddoor meeting of the 15-member body in New York on Monday, including over the possible involvement of Pakistan-based proscribed terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba , said people familiar with the matter. India has pointed a finger at Pakistan for the Pahalgam attack killed 26 civilians, and India has resolved to hunt down those responsible for it. There was broad condemnation of the assault, and council members refused to accept Pakistan's 'false flag operation' narrative, the people cited said. A false flag operation is one carried out with the intention of blaming another for UNSC members specifically brought up the targeting of tourists on the basis of their religion, and Pakistan was advised to sort out issues bilaterally with India, they meeting was scheduled by Greece, president of the UNSC for May, following a request from Pakistan, which is currently a non-permanent member of the council. Assistant secretary-general for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific in the departments of political and peace-building affairs and peace operations, Khaled Mohamed Khiari of Tunisia, briefed the council on behalf of both the meeting he said there was a call for 'dialogue and peaceful resolution of the conflict,' while noting that the 'situation is volatile.' Ambassador Evangelos Sekeris , a permanent representative of Greece to the UN and the current UNSC president, described it as a 'productive meeting, helpful.' Although the council did not issue a statement after the meeting, which was held in a consultative room rather than the main hall, Pakistan's permanent representative to the UN, ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, told media persons that the country's objectives were 'largely served and achieved.'
Hans India
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
UNSC raps Pak, poses tough questions concerning J&K terror attack: Reports
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has pulled up Pakistan and asked tough questions concerning the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam at its closed session amid the escalating tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad, reports said. The members slammed Islamabad and questioned Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba's involvement in the Pahalgam attack, which killed 26 people. Though Pakistan claimed that the meeting largely served and achieved the objectives of the UNSC's meeting, reports showed that it flopped miserably. In the meeting, which was called at the request of Pakistan's Permanent Representative Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, he claimed that his country was not involved in the terror attack. Though the session was a closed consultation and had no official records, the UNSC members called for dialogue and restraint to resolve the issues. After the meeting on Monday, UNSC President Evangelos Sekeris told reporters, "The Security Council is always helpful in such efforts' to de-escalate. It is the responsibility of the Council. It was a productive and helpful meeting. Since the meeting was a closed consultation, its proceedings are secret without official records." Assistant Secretary-General Mohamed Khaled Khiari, who briefed the meeting, said all want de-escalation. Russia's Deputy Permanent Representative Anna Evstigneeva, who attended the meeting, said, "We hope for de-escalation". Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the situation was at a "boiling point" and asked the two countries to "step back from the brink". "It is also essential -- especially at this critical hour -- to avoid a military confrontation that could easily spin out of control," he said. Condemning 'strongly' the terrorist massacre of 26 people in Pahalgam last month, he said, "I understand the raw feelings following the awful terror attack'. Notably, The Resistance Front (TRF), an affiliate of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack, in which 25 Indians and one Nepalese national were killed.
Hans India
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
UNSC holds closed consultation on India, Pak situation; president Sekeris calls it productive
United Nations: The Security Council met in a closed session on the tension between India and Pakistan, and its President Evangelos Sekeris described it afterwards as a 'productive meeting'. As he left the meeting on Monday, he told reporters, 'The Security Council is always helpful in such efforts' to de-escalate. "It is the responsibility of the Council". 'It was a productive meeting and helpful', he said. Since the meeting was a closed consultation, its proceedings are secret without official records. Assistant Secretary-General Mohamed Khaled Khiari, who briefed the meeting, said on his way out that all want de-escalation. Asked how he viewed it, he said, 'Situation is volatile", and would not elaborate. Russia's Deputy Permanent Representative Anna Evstigneeva, who attended the meeting, said, 'We hope for de-escalation". Sekeris convened the meeting at the request of Pakistan's Permanent Representative Asim Iftikhar Ahmad. Ahmad called for a closed consultation because countries that are not members of the Council are not allowed to participate in it under Council procedures. That effectively shut out India, while Pakistan, as a current elected member, attended. Before the meeting, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the situation was at a 'boiling point" and asked the two countries to 'step back from the brink'. "It is also essential – especially at this critical hour -- to avoid a military confrontation that could easily spin out of control', he said. Condemning 'strongly' the terrorist massacre of 26 people in Pahalgam last month, he said, "I understand the raw feelings following the awful terror attack'. The Resistance Front, an affiliate of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Tayiba, owned responsibility for the terrorist attack. Speaking to reporters after the consultation, Ahmad 'categorically' denied India's charge that Pakistan was involved in the attack. He vacillated between militancy and conciliation. He referred to Kashmir as a disputed territory welling with mass discontent that is at the root of the problem with India, rather than terrorism, while also offering cooperation with India. 'We are fully prepared to defend our sovereignty', he said. 'We reiterate our commitment to peaceful cooperative relations with all our neighbours, including India, [and] we remain open to dialogue', he added. 'In view of the gravity of the situation, the calls of dialogue and de-escalation and peaceful resolution of disputes as we also heard from the Council members today are most pertinent', Ahmad said.
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First Post
05-05-2025
- Politics
- First Post
After Pakistan's request, UNSC to discuss post-Pahalgam situation in close-door meeting today
Following a request from Pakistan, the United Nations Security Council will be convening a closed-door meeting today to discuss the brewing tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad after the Pahalgam attack read more The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to convene a closed-door meeting today to discuss the brewing tensions between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people in India. According to the statement shared by the council, the meeting was requested by Pakistan amid the diplomatic turmoil with India. Pakistan has been saying that it will seek the help of the United Nations to deal with what it describes as 'India's aggressive actions, provocations, and provocative statements'. Pakistan currently sits as a non-permanent member of the powerful 15-nation Security Council, which is being presided over by Greece for the month of May. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD According to the statement, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, will deliver a statement at the Security Council stakeout area following the meeting on the afternoon of Monday, May 5, 2025. What is Pakistan planning to do? In a statement released on Sunday, Pakistan's foreign office said it would 'specifically raise the issue of India's move to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty, calling it an 'illegal action' that endangers 'peace and security,' in the region. Last month, Ambassador Evangelos Sekeris, Permanent Representative of Greece to the United Nations and this month's president of the UNSC has expressed concerns about the mounting tensions between Indian and Pakistan. However, he had sympathised with the Indian cause. 'We express our condolences to the governments of India, Nepal and the families of the victims,' Sekeris said while referring to the Pahalgam attack. 'This is a matter of principle. We condemn terrorism in all its forms, wherever it happens. On the other hand, we are concerned about the mounting tensions in the region. Two very big countries. Of course, India is far bigger than Pakistan,' he added. Following the attack, India announced a series of security measures against Pakistan. Some of them included expelling Pakistani diplomats, putting the Indus Water Treaty into abeyance and immediately shutting down the Attari border. India also shut its airspace to all flights operated by Pakistan and halted overall trade with Islamabad. In response to this, Pakistan came up with countermeasures, such as shutting down the airspace for Indian airlines. It also rejected India's suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, emphasising that the move to stop the water flow would be considered an 'act of war'. With inputs from agencies.
