Kuwait City [Kuwait], May 27 : Former Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, part of India's multi-party delegation to Kuwait, described the group's engagements as wide-ranging and impactful.
Speaking about the visit, he said, "The delegation has had 1.5 days of very comprehensive engagement with Kuwait... We had an informal sitting, called Diwaniya, with some of the most influential and prominent members of the Kuwaiti society and polity... We had great interaction with the members of the Indian community... The visit enabled the delegation members to highlight our fight against Pakistan-sponsored terrorism."
"Kuwait had very strongly condemned the attack in Pahalgam. Kuwait has a very strong position when it comes to terrorism. India and Kuwait also have a joint working group on Security and counter-terrorism... Kuwait is also an influential member of the Gulf Cooperation on Terrorist Financing, and it also has significant financial and economic leverage on Pakistan. The fact that any acts of terrorism would lead to a strong response from India and therefore, will have an impact on the region and beyond is something that Kuwaiti interlocutors have internalised and taken note of," he continued.
Earlier, the delegation met members of the Indian diaspora in Kuwait, using the opportunity to share India's united message against terrorism and underline the importance of international awareness. The session was met with strong support from community members.
One said, "The presentation given by the Indian delegation was very concise and precise, and the message was very clear, even if we need to go to war for peace, we will do it."
Another diaspora member condemned the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, saying, "It (Pahalgam terror attack) was a heinous crime committed against humanity. India has zero tolerance towards terrorism... the things the delegation said to us and the clarity they gave... we would be the ambassadors to carry it forward to the world."
BJP MP Baijayant Panda, leading the delegation, reinforced India's strong position and outreach. "The meetings in Kuwait have been outstanding. We met the Deputy PM and many other stakeholders. This is a country with which India has had a relationship for centuries. In recent years, PM Modi's efforts at building relationships around the world has also led to tremendous results here in the Middle East and Gulf countries. When PM Modi visited here, Kuwait gave him its highest civilian honour," he said.
The all-party delegation includes BJP MPs Nishikant Dubey, Phangnon Konyak, Rekha Sharma, Satnam Singh Sandhu, AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, and former diplomat Harsh Shringla.
The visit is part of a wider diplomatic effort following Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 civilians were killed by Pakistan-sponsored terrorists. As part of its military response, Indian forces struck terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, eliminating over 100 terrorists linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen. The Modi government's diplomatic campaign has deployed seven multi-party delegations to reinforce India's zero-tolerance approach to terrorism globally.