NEW DELHI: India at the SCO Summit decided not to sign the Joint Declaration post the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers’ Meeting at Qingdao, China.Sources said this decision was “in protest of dilution of Indian stand on terrorism.”In his address at the summit on Thursday Rajanth Singh emphasized that SCO members must condemn this evil unequivocally, he said, reaffirming India’s resolve to fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestations” in addition to reiterating “the need to hold the perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of reprehensible acts of terrorism, including cross-border terrorism, accountable and bring them to justice. He termed any and every act of terrorism as criminal & unjustifiable regardless of their motivation whenever, wherever and committed by whom-so-ever.Addressing the Defence Ministers, SCO Secretary General, Director Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) of SCO and other distinguished delegates, Rajanth Singh stated that the biggest challenges faced by the region are related to peace, security and trust-deficit, with increasing radicalisation, extremism & terrorism being the root cause of these problems.
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