India’s failure to rally international backing for its claims that Pakistan was behind a recent deadly militant attack in Kashmir has exposed the limits of its diplomatic influence.
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The setback has raised questions about India’s ability to mobilise multilateral platforms in its favour, despite being a prominent member of the China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and the US-backed Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), according to analysts.
At the SCO meeting in Qingdao on June 25, India refused to endorse a joint declaration that omitted any mention of the April 22 militant attack in Pahalgam, where gunmen killed 26 people – mostly tourists – in one of the deadliest assaults in Kashmir in recent years.
India has blamed Pakistan-based militants for the attack, which led to a brief conflict between the two South Asian neighbours before a US-brokered ceasefire took effect on May 10.
The final text of the SCO declaration did refer to militant violence in Pakistan’s Balochistan – another point of contention as Islamabad has long accused New Delhi of backing armed groups in the province.
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India’s external affairs ministry said India refused to back the declaration because “one country objected” to Delhi’s request to include concerns about terrorism.