Ex-diplomat Saran says important for world to take note of live phenomenon of terrorism which requires robust action

Paris, May 26 (PTI) As the all-party delegation visiting Europe got underway in Paris, former diplomat Pankaj Saran on Monday highlighted the importance of the world taking note of the very live phenomenon of terrorism, which requires robust action at an international level.

Saran, part of the BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad-led nine-member team to cover six European countries, highlighted the strength of India-France bilateral ties, which will help the group reinforce India’s counter-terrorism message on a global stage.

“Our primary message is that India has lived too long with terrorism, and it is becoming very difficult to continue to live like this without some cost being borne by the sources of terror. We cannot live like this,” said Saran.

“It is really important for Europe to understand that terrorism is not something of the past. It is still a live phenomenon in the world which needs to be tackled at many, many levels, not least the international level. So, it still requires zero tolerance and robust action. There are no easy ways to deal with terrorism,” he said.

The former deputy national security advisor pointed to the fact that European countries had been "living under the shadow of terror", and therefore, a constant reminder of the need to combat this shared threat was important.

“These things wax and wane. When things are good, people forget… that we are all living under the shadow of some evil forces, some people who believe that terrorism is a legitimate instrument of achieving political goals and objectives,” said Saran.

“We have to disabuse everyone that this is not acceptable in today's day and age. So that is the message which needs to be sent constantly, repeatedly, at high levels, across the board. Today, terrorism has international influences, and terrorists learn from each other. Some groups seem to benefit from each other's experiences, ideologies. It's a global problem,” he said.

The former diplomat on the role the Indo-French partnership can play said: “France is one of the most dependable, reliable and strong partners which India has, not today, but for the last many decades. Counter-terrorism and military and defence cooperation is one of the most fundamental pillars of this cooperation, including intelligence sharing." “So, when it comes to the India-France relationship, it is actually so strong on these security matters that it really is a great boon for India's global engagement.” The multi-party delegation led by Prasad, the seventh group in an international outreach initiative following Operation Sindoor, includes MPs Daggubati Purandeswari, Ghulam Ali Khatana, Dr Amar Singh, Samik Bhattacharya, M. Thambidurai and Priyanka Chaturvedi, and former union minister M.J. Akbar.

After France, the delegation will visit the UK, Germany, the EU, Italy and Denmark.

As part of India’s diplomatic outreach, seven multi-party delegations are travelling to 33 global capitals to reach out to the international community on Pakistan’s designs and India’s response to terror after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people.

India carried out precision strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in the early hours of May 7 under Operation Sindoor, following which Pakistan attempted to attack the Indian military bases on May 8, 9 and 10. The Indian side responded strongly to the Pakistani actions.

The on-ground hostilities ended with an understanding of stopping the military actions following talks between the directors general of military operations of both sides on May 10. PTI AK PY PY PY