Pakistan comes under international pressure to act against terrorists & terror groups operating from areas under it… https://t.co/qsXn28EAtj — Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) 1550797721000

WASHINGTON: The United Nations Security Council on Thursday identified India as a victim of terrorism emanating from Pakistan and asked member states to cooperate actively with New Delhi to bring the perpetrators of the Pulwama attack to justice.The statement came as a relief for India while embarrassing Pakistan and its patron China , which has long offered geo-political cover for Islamabad’s use of terrorism.Although, the statement did not explicitly name Pakistan, it identified the Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed, which bragged about the attack and whose leader remains free and protected by Pakistani state, while directly asking member states to “to cooperate actively with the Government of India and all other relevant authorities in this regard."The statement also identified the place of the attack as “Jammu and Kashmir,” India’s official term for a state of the union, rather than other appellations used by Pakistan.“The members of the Security Council reaffirmed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security," the statement said, adding that any "acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed.”Pakistan has often rationalized terrorism and acts of violence in Jammu and Kashmir perpetrated by its terrorist groups and accomplices inside India to be fallout of India’s human rights excesses.Just the previous day, Pakistan’s ambassador to the UN Maleeha Lodhi had met Secretary General Antonio Gutterres and argued that the Pulwama incident “reinforces the need to address the root cause of violence in occupied Jammu and Kashmir and to find a peaceful solution to the longstanding dispute in accordance with several UN Security Council resolutions.”The most significant UN resolution 47 relating to Kashmir actually directs Pakistan to withdraw from the portion of Jammu and Kashmir that it has occupied - something Pakistani officials are loath to recall- as the first step in a three-step process.Lodhi also argued that “India's no-talk posture is not only irresponsible, but it puts at stake, the peace and security of all of South Asia,” despite countries of the region, notably India, Afghanistan, and Iran, identifying Pakistan as the source of terrorism endangering peace in the region.China is reported to have balked at the language of the statement before agreeing to fall in line, as long as Pakistan was not explicitly named and shamed.The UNSC smackdown set the stage for renewed efforts by India, France, US, and UK among the Permanent Five members to designate JeM and its leader Masood Azhar as terrorist entities after years of protection for him from Pakistan under cover from China, whose veto power enables it to stall the process.On Thursday, Pakistan was embarrassed into reissuing a ban on the Lashkar-e-Taiba , the other terrorist group that launches attacks in India under the tutelage of the Pakistani intelligence agency ISI. The UN-designated terrorist, LeT chief Hafiz Saeed has been freely making speeches in Pakistan after the ban expired and Pakistani authorities made no effort to keep him in check despite terrorism charges against him.