India Abstains From Vote At UNSC To Allow Aid To Sanctioned Entities

United Nations: India remained abstained from voting in United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on a resolution that exempts humanitarian aid efforts from sanctions.

In the explanation of the vote, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj said that India’s concerns were triggered by proven instances of terrorist groups in its neighbourhood, including those listed by the Council, re-incarnating themselves as humanitarian organizations and civil society groups precisely to evade the sanctions.

“These terrorist organizations use the umbrella of the humanitarian assistance space to raise funds and recruit fighters. India will call for caution and due diligence be used when providing humanitarian aid to groups that are prohibited under UN Security Council Resolution 1267, who continue to thrive with full state hospitality in territories universally acknowledged as terrorist havens by the international community,” Kamboj said making a veiled reference to Pakistan.

India reiterated during the negotiations that under no circumstances, the garb of humanitarian cover intended to be provided by these exemptions should be misused by banned terrorist groups to expand their terror activities in the region and beyond.

“More importantly, such exemptions must not facilitate mainstreaming of terror entities in the political space in the region. Due diligence and extreme caution in the implementation of this resolution, therefore, is an absolute must. For this very reason, India had sought in the text of the resolution a proactive role for the 1267 Monitoring Team, coupled with robust reporting standards and mechanisms,” Kamboj added.