Terrorism Test

The failure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence ministers to adopt a joint statement exposes once again the brittle consensus within the bloc on fundamental issues like terrorism.

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While the SCO has often projected itself as a Eurasian pillar of security cooperation, the inability to agree on the definition or mention of terrorism — especially after a high-profile attack — renders that claim increasingly hollow.

India's refusal to endorse a final statement that omitted references to the April 22 Kashmir attack, which killed 26 Hindu pilgrims, underscores not just New Delhi's firm stance but also the limits of multilateralism when confronted with bilateral enmities.

That the statement was blocked reportedly due to Pakistan's opposition — suggestive of a guilty conscience — reflects a deeper fracture in the SCO's core: the absence of a shared threat perception.

For India, cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan is a central security concern. For Pakistan, such allegations are routinely deflected or denied.