NEW DELHI: Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi hinted that his country may not oppose a joint move by France, Britain and the US in the UN Security Council to list Jaish-e-Mohammed terror group’s chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist. “Time has come for Pakistan to decide in its own interests. We will do what’s in Pakistan’s interests,” Qureshi told Geo TV in an interview, PTI reported.
“We have some global commitments...We will have to take action which doesn’t harm our global reputation,” he said, without elaborating. Describing the situation following the Pulwama terror attack as a “defining moment” for Pakistan, he said we don’t want to go for a war with India. “We want peace,” he said. Last week, the US, the UK and France moved a fresh proposal in the UN Security Council to designate Azhar as a global terrorist. The Security Council Sanctions Committee has 10 working days to consider the fresh proposal submitted by the three.
This is the fourth such bid at the UN in the last 10 years to list Azhar as a global terrorist. When asked whether Pakistan will request its close ally China to veto the resolution once again in the UNSC, Qureshi said his government will try to build a consensus among all parties and do what’s in Pakistan’s interests. Tensions between India and Pakistan flared up after a suicide bomber killed 40 CRPF personnel on Feb 14.