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India has initiated a diplomatic outreach to 33 countries against terrorism.
Seven delegations of MPs will visit foreign nations and UN for discussions.
The selected countries include UN Security Council members and others.
New Delhi:
A massive diplomatic initiative by India to reach out to nearly three dozen countries with a message against terrorism in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack begins today. Seven delegations comprising parliamentarians from across political parties will visit foreign countries and the United Nations Security Council to project the country's consensus and resolute approach to combating terrorism.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri briefed the seven delegations yesterday. By Sunday, all the delegations will be on their way.
How These Countries Were Selected
During Tuesday's briefing, Mr Misri had clarified on what basis 33 countries were selected for the outreach programme. Citing him, BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi said about 15 of them are members of the UN Security Council, which has five permanent and 10 non-permanent members that rotate every two years.
Besides, the list also includes five other countries that will become members of the UNSC in the near future. Some other countries whose voice is usually heard on the global stage were also selected, she told reporters.
Read: In Outreach Delegations' Briefing, Pak's 'Victim Card', China's Changed Stand
Ms Sarangi is part of the delegation led by JDU's Sanjay Kumar Jha that will travel to Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, and Singapore. It will be the first delegation to leave today for the outreach programme, with Japan being the first destination.
Pakistan is currently among the rotating members of the Security Council and will remain so for the next 17 months. They will definitely try to present their position and make anti-India claims, she said, underlining the need for India's global outreach.
"Our government had rightly decided that MPs of different parties should visit these different countries together and present our narrative to the bureaucracy and political representatives there and present our stand, and condemn Pakistan's approach of promoting terrorism. This is our responsibility," said the MP from Bhubaneswar.
She said the delegation wants to give the message to the world that India stands united against terrorism.
The Global Outreach
The outreach initiative follows Operation Sindoor, under which Indian forces had struck terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) earlier this month in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.
The seven delegations would be headed by the Congress's Shashi Tharoor, the BJP's Ravi Shankar Prasad and Baijayant Panda, the JDU's Sanjay Kumar Jha, NCP's Supriya Sule, Shiv Sena's Shrikant Eknath Shinde, and the DMK's Kanimozhi.
Read: After Minister's Call, Team Uddhav Extends Support To Anti-Terror Outreach
Mr Jha's delegation, comprising nine members, including the BJP's Ms Sarangi, Brij Lal, Prasan Baruah, and Hemang Joshi, and the CPM's John Brittas, would leave for Japan around 11:30 am. The Trinamool Congress's Abhishek Banerjee will also be part of this team after party MP Yusuf Pathan opted out of it.
The delegation led by Mr Shinde would leave next with a team comprising Bansuri Swaraj, Sasmit Patra, and other parliamentarians.
During their visit, these delegations will meet top political leaders in foreign countries, including their prime ministers, foreign ministers, MPs, opposition leaders, intellectuals, journalists, and expat Indians living in these countries.
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