Hitting out on Pakistan Union Foreign Minister S Jaishankar recalled Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s Pakistan 2011 visit when she drew a “snake” analogy to control terrorism.
Responding to a question on Pakistan minister Hina Rabbani Khar Jaishankar said, “I read the reports on what Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said. And I was reminded, more than a decade ago, my memory serves me right. Hillary Clinton was visiting Pakistan. And Hina Rabbani Khar was a minister at that time. Standing next to her, Hillary Clinton actually said that if you have snakes in your backyard, you can’t expect them to bite only your neighbors. Eventually, they will bite the people who keep them in the backyard. But as you know, Pakistan is not great at taking good advice. You see what’s happening there.”
Jaishankar further stated, “In terms of what they are saying, the truth is everybody, the world today, sees Pakistan as the epicenter of terrorism. I know we’ve been through two and a half years of Covid and a lot of us have brain fog as a result. But I assure you the world has not forgotten where does terrorism (emanate from), which has its fingerprints over a lot of activities in the region and beyond the region. So, I would say that it’s something they should remind themselves before indulging in the kind of fantasies which they do.”
Firing a fresh salvo on terrorism Jaishankar said the world is not “stupid” and has been increasingly calling out countries, organizations, and people indulging in terrorism.
“You know, you’re asking the wrong minister when you say how long will we do this? Because it is the ministers of Pakistan who will tell you how long Pakistan intends to practice terrorism,” Jaishankar said.
However, Jaishankar also asked Pakistan to “clean up your act and try being a good neighbor and contribute to what the rest of the world is doing today, which is economic growth, development, and progress”.