PM Modi Calls for Unified SCO Approach to Combat Terrorism

PTI, September 1, 2026, Bishkek: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to confront countries using terrorism as an instrument of state policy and reject "double standards" in the collective fight against terror financing and recruitment, remarks widely viewed as a direct swipe at Pakistan.

In the presence of Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chinese President Xi Jinping and many other global leaders, Modi told the annual SCO summit that the grouping should work unitedly to "dismantle the entire ecosystem" of terrorist financing, recruitment, radicalisation, and safe havens.

The Prime Minister, expressing concerns over the West Asia crisis, said India has consistently called for all tensions and conflicts to be resolved not on the battlefield, but through dialogue and diplomacy.

Modi, in an apparent reference to China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), said connectivity projects should respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries as it is the fundamental spirit of the SCO Charter.

India has been critical of BRI as part of it passes through Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir.

However, the central theme of the Prime Minister's address appeared to be his call to the SCO to work unitedly to combat terrorism. His remarks were largely seen as directed at Pakistan's support to various terror groups.

"Terrorism continues to pose a serious challenge to humanity as a whole. In the fight against terrorism, we cannot remain confined to an action-reaction approach," Modi said.

"We must dismantle the entire ecosystem of terrorist financing, recruitment, radicalisation, and safe havens. We must speak with one voice and make it clear that there can be no place for double standards on this serious issue," he said.

"We must send a strong message to countries that use terrorism as an instrument of policy and provide safe haven and support to terrorists that terrorism can never be a strategic asset for anyone," Modi added.

The Prime Minister, delving into the situation in West Asia, said it demonstrated that a conflict in one region does not remain confined to that region only as its impact is felt across the world.