India's strong counter-terrorism posture aimed at building long-term peace, stability: Indian envoy to Lanka

He thanked Sri Lanka and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake for expressing solidarity with the victims of the Pahalgam terror attacks and condemning terrorism in the strongest terms.

Colombo: India's firm and strong counter-terrorism posture is aimed at building long-term peace and stability in South Asia, Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Santosh Jha has said, asserting that terrorism is a global scourge and all countries must act together to tackle it.

In an interview with the Daily Mirror newspaper published on Monday, Jha also said that Pakistan's posture, coupled with its internal dynamics and proclivity to use terrorism as a state policy, should be the principal concern for the international community, not India's counter-terrorism response.

India carried out precision strikes under Operation Sindoor on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir early on May 7 in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people.

Following the Indian action, Pakistan attempted to attack Indian military bases on May 8, 9 and 10. The Indian forces launched a fierce counter-attack on several Pakistani military installations.

India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.

"The underlying principle of Operation Sindoor is zero tolerance for terrorism. Sri Lanka has itself been a victim of terrorism and shares the principle of zero tolerance," the Indian diplomat said, responding to a series of questions on the recent confrontation between India and Pakistan.

Jha said that India militarily intervened to destroy terror camps, with the objective of delivering justice to the victims of Pahalgam, but also to deter and prevent more such cross-border attacks.

"The region's economic stability, especially for countries like Sri Lanka with its mainstay being tourism, is contingent on security after all," he said.

"India’s firm and strong counter-terrorism posture is aimed at building long-term peace and stability in the region and serves the larger interest of building peace and prosperity in the entire South Asian region in the long term," he added.

"As my Prime Minister stated, this is not an era for war, but also not an era for terror," Jha asserted.

He also said that the onus and responsibility for any hostility in the region lies squarely with Pakistan. "Any act of terrorism will be seen as an act of war and a befitting response will be delivered," he added.

Jha thanked Sri Lanka and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake for expressing solidarity with the victims of the Pahalgam terror attacks and condemning terrorism in the strongest terms.

"As a country which has recently faced the devastating consequences of terrorism, Sri Lanka understands the pain and destruction it causes to communities, societies and their economies," he said.

"Terrorism is a global scourge and all countries must act together to deal with it. It is also noteworthy that when Sri Lanka suffered from the Easter terror attacks, Prime Minister Modi was only global leader who visited Sri Lanka to express India’s solidarity with the victims of the attack," he added.

Responding to another question, Jha said that Sri Lanka is a centrepiece of India's Neighbourhood First policy and the relationship between the two countries is marked by unprecedented trust and goodwill at all levels.

"India seeks peace. India is the land of the Buddha, the epitome of peace. We are indeed focused on peace and prosperity for India and the rest of our region. But, we cannot allow terrorism to flourish with impunity," he added.