JAIPUR: Without directly naming Pakistan for the recent Pathankot terror attack which is largely believed to be carried out and coordinated from across the border, India today said the Government of a nation is responsible to probe and explain if actions emanating from its territory impinge negatively on others.
Addressing the counter-terrorism conference here, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar said if a country is unable to take action against such elements, it is called a “failed State”.
Mr Jaishankar’s comments assume significance at a time when India is pressing Pakistan to bring perpetrators of the Pathankot airbase attack to book with his visit to Islamabad impinging on the decisive action it takes on the issue.
“To be effective, any regime must enforce two key concepts: assigning responsibility and ensuring accountability,” the Foreign Secretary said, adding that “Now, the very basis of the contemporary international order is that nation states are its basic unit and each government takes responsibility for developments and actions within its territory.”
“Indeed, when confronted with situations where that ability no longer exists, we term those polities as failed states and treat them as such. Furthermore, if actions emanating from a national territory impinge negatively on others, the government of that nation is, at the very least, pressed to probe and explain as the first step in a process of accountability,” he said. (AGENCIES)