'If India fails to offer new evidence on JeM Chief,China will not change its position'

BEIJING:- On the listing of JeM Chief Masood Azhar, China believes that if India cannot provide new evidence, it will not change its stance on the matter, read an editorial in the state run Global Times.  

"China's position on Azhar is consistent as India failed to provide updated evidence. China and India should eye the bigger picture and prevent differences over concrete issues coming in the way of bilateral relations; otherwise, it will hurt the interests of both countries, especially India," the article quoted Zhang Jiadong, director of Center for South Asian Studies, Fudan University as saying.

He added, "Treating organizations and individuals differently is something that occurs frequently. Terrorism is the enemy of mankind. However, some terrorist organizations often target specific countries and ethnic groups. This easily causes differences in understanding, leading to hurdles in forming an international consensus. Many anti-China terrorist organizations and their leaders are still active in many countries and regions and are sometimes treated as guests. Whether this phenomenon can be treated rationally is an important indicator of a country's maturity."

Quoting Long Xingchun, non-resident fellow of Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University of China, the article said, "China is concerned about the recent attack in Kashmir and feels sympathetic toward the victims. But this will not alter China's consistent stance toward the status of Azhar."

It further added, "If India cannot offer new evidence, China will not change its position. If China does, it will be a repudiation of its previous stance and leave the impression that it was deliberately blocking India's bid in the past. This will have a much wider impact on China's diplomacy."

In a setback to India, China recently, once again put a technical hold on a proposal by the UN Security Council to designate Jaish-e-Mohammad Chief Masood Azhar as a 'global terrorist'.

In its reaction, the External Affairs Ministry said India will continue to pursue all available avenues to ensure that leaders of terror groups involved in heinous attacks on Indian citizens are brought to justice.

"We are disappointed by this outcome. This has prevented action by the international community to designate the leader of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a proscribed and active terrorist organization which has claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on February 14," the MEA said.

Without naming China, it said the UN's 1267 Sanctions Committee was not able to come to a decision on the proposal for listing Azhar on account of a member placing the proposal on hold.