Modi’s address to the UN mature, futuristic
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's maiden speech at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday had a smart mix of issues which resonated with the global as well as the domestic audiences. He articulated them in a way that they did not seem exclusive but intertwined. By doing so, Mr Modi heralded his arrival as a global leader of consequence and reiterated the important role India has in ensuring peace and welfare across the world. The sentiments he expressed will see elaboration in the days to come, including perhaps in his meeting with US President Barack Obama. Sensing the international mood, the Prime Minister devoted a large portion of his address to the growing menace of terrorism and called for a concerted effort to tackle it. His exhortation to adopt a ‘comprehensive international convention on terror' was an intelligent way to remind the world community that terror in all forms should not only be condemned but also combated without discrimination. That he was seized with the differentiation some state elements in certain countries have been making in dealing with terror groups became evident when he slammed the exercise of splitting hairs on “good terrorism and bad terrorism”. This observation is crucial given the attempts certain quarters have made to categorise Talibani elements in Afghanistan and Pakistan as ‘good Taliban' who should be dealt with consideration and the ‘bad Taliban' that must be exterminated. It is also important in view of the fact that while Pakistan has seemingly been active in targeting Taliban and Al Qaeda elements within, it has demonstrated a different set of rules when it comes to dealing with anti-India terror groups such as the lashkar-e-Tayyeba, which operates from Pakistani soil. India has been saying for long that there is nothing ‘good' about terror and that all terrorists are enemies of humankind. The Prime Minister's call to end such categorisation will in probability be among the key points he will raise with the US President on Monday. Mr Modi could not, however, resist the temptation to take a swipe at the West, which had years ago, at least before 9/11, scoffed at India's alarm over terrorism. The Prime Minister's emphasis on terror in the address fitted in well with Mr Obama's concerns over the spread of the Islamic State.
Quite fittingly, Pakistan got the short shrift it deserved. Mr Modi refused to be drawn into a verbal spat over his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif's observations — so-called human rights violations and atrocities against women, and the dead and buried UN-mandated plebiscite — on Kashmir. But he did respond forcefully enough, saying that New Delhi was willing to engage in bilateral dialogue with Islamabad in an atmosphere free from the shadow of terror. Sternly though gently, Mr Modi reminded Islamabad that the cause of peace in the region would not be served by Pakistan raising bilateral issues (such as Kashmir) in international fora like the United Nations. The Indian Prime Minister reminded the world community that India had extended help to Pakistan to tide over the recent crisis of floods, which had also devastated Jammu & Kashmir. This was a clever way to signal that New Delhi sought humanitarian cross-linkages as against Pakistan's narrow obsession with Kashmir.