S Arabia condemns Pahalgam attack, rejects attempt to link terror with race, religion

Saudi Arabia, one of the strongest supporters of Pakistan in the Islamic world, has strongly condemned the Pahalgam terror attack and joined India in rejecting any attempt to link terrorism to any particular race, religion or culture.

In a joint statement issued at the end of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Kingdom, the two countries condemned terrorism and violent extremism in all its forms and manifestations, and emphasised that this remains one of the gravest threats to humanity. They agreed that there cannot be any justification for any act of terror for any reason whatsoever.

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The PM, who had left for the Kingdom on a two-day visit on Tuesday, cut short his trip and returned to the Indian capital in the wee hours of today in the wake of the Pahalgam attack in which at least 26 innocent tourists were killed.

India and Saudi Arabia welcomed the excellent cooperation between the two sides in counter-terrorism and terror financing. In a subtle message to Pakistan, Saudi Arabia also expressed solidarity with India’s stand on cross-border terrorism and called on all states to reject the use of the menace against other countries, dismantle terrorism infrastructure where it exists, and bring perpetrators of terrorism to justice swiftly.

Both sides stressed the need to prevent access to weapons, including missiles and drones to commit terrorist acts against other countries.

Secretary General of the Muslim World League, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa also called on the PM in Jeddah before he departed for India and strongly condemned the ghastly terror attack in J & K and offered deepest condolences on the innocent lives lost.

India and Saudi Arabia expressed satisfaction at the steady growth in bilateral trade in recent years with India being the second largest trading partner for Saudi Arabia; and Saudi Arabia being India’s fifth largest trading partner in 2023-2024.

The two sides appreciated the deepening of the defence ties as a key pillar of the Strategic Partnership, and welcomed the creation of a Ministerial Committee on Defence Cooperation under the Strategic Partnership Council.

Noting the continuing cooperation achieved in the security fields, both sides highlighted the importance of this cooperation for better security and stability. They also emphasised the importance of furthering cooperation between both sides in the areas of cybersecurity, maritime border security, combating transnational crime, narcotics and drug trafficking.

The two countries also signed four MoUs, including one on cooperation in the field of space activities for peaceful purposes.