United Nations, Sep 26: India on Saturday termed as “simply unacceptable” the targeting of commercial shipping and seafarers amid the ongoing Gulf conflict and voiced concern over the “weaponisation of everything” with acute consequences for Global South nations.

“This year, we are witnessing a conflict in the Gulf, one that is exacerbating an already difficult situation. We remain deeply concerned over continuing hostilities,” External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said here.

Delivering India’s national statement at the General Debate at the high-level 81st session of the UN General Assembly, Jaishankar particularly called out the targeting of commercial shipping and seafarers transiting international waterways amid the ongoing conflict and described the attacks that have led to loss of lives as “simply unacceptable”. India called upon all parties to exercise restraint, de-escalate tensions, ensure protection of civilians, and uninterrupted flow of energy and commerce.

“New challenges in the maritime domain have added to longstanding ones on land. There have been attacks on commercial shipping and seafarers in the Gulf, and from the Red Sea to the Black Sea,” Jaishankar said.

He said it is “completely unacceptable” that seafarers from India as well as from other nations have lost their lives in these attacks on shipping and maritime crew. 

On the eve of his UNGA address, Jaishankar, along with Liberia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Sara Beysolow Nyanti, launched the ‘Group of Friends on Safety & Security of Shipping & Seafarers’.

The initiative, which includes 23 other partners, aims to rally global public opinion against such unwarranted targeting. “We must ensure that the safety and security of shipping and seafarers is never compromised. Scrupulously observing international law is an integral element of that endeavour,” Jaishankar said.

At the launch of the Group of Friends, Jaishankar had noted that just days ago, an Antigua and Barbuda-flagged bulk carrier MV Cape Dao was attacked in the Gulf of Oman, in which an Indian sailor lost his life. Earlier, a Panama-flagged oil tanker El Gaia was struck while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. An Indian crew member went missing after that incident.

India also voiced concern over the ongoing conflicts and the “weaponisation” of everything, saying this particularly has significant impacts on countries of the Global South.

“Even as we meet, conflicts and confrontations remain our primary preoccupation. The inability to maintain peace is not just undermining security, but threatening progress, and retarding development.”

He said in a globalised world, the effects of war are felt worldwide, with countries far from conflicts being penalised for no fault of theirs.

“Those most impacted often have the least say. This assembly must face up to the true state of affairs,” he said.

“What we are actually seeing is a weaponisation of everything. A mindset of extreme competition has set in, undermining institutions, and establishing chokepoints. It extends from the world of finance to constricting market access, disrupting supply chains and withholding technology.

Underscoring that resources and connectivity have become particularly subject to leveraging, he said, nations are now more focused on de-risking and diversifying.

“While this may secure their interests to varying degrees, the overall atmosphere is no longer that of trust or goodwill,” Jaishankar said.

India emphasised that peace is not just the absence of war. “If the world is subjected to continuous threats and pressures, then we are really living on the edge of an abyss. All it takes is one more step to push us over”.

“Therefore, it is imperative to strengthen stability, security and predictability. These are crucial elements of the enabling environment for peace. If any of them are undermined, peace will inevitably be weakened. After eight decades of the UN, this should have become our second nature,” he said.

India said the conflict in Ukraine, which is now in its fifth year, is equally concerning. Jaishankar referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks in August at the SCO Summit that “endless war must give way now to an end to war.

“India supports ongoing initiatives to bring peace. Even as this is underway, there is an urgent need to address the security of seafarers, and supply of food grains and energy. India is prepared to do everything possible to ameliorate this situation, especially with regard to food and energy security,” Jaishankar said.

He also voiced concern over tensions and violence in West Asia, describing them as regrettable.

“We strongly believe that a durable and lasting peace requires a two-state solution. In the meantime, India is contributing to humanitarian assistance and relief efforts for the Palestinian people,” he said.

He stressed that amid global conflicts, the predicament of the Global South is particularly acute.

“It faces a 4F crisis – of the security of food, fuel, fertiliser and finance. The combined impact of a Super El Nino, compounding fertiliser shortages and now impediments to grain movements, all these are cause for alarm,” he said.

“The Global South’s right to industrialise is also undermined by non-market practices and market denial. The march of technology, that was meant to instil hope, has now become a source of anxiety. Misuse of AI is sharpening bias and diluting mutual respect. These directions bode ill for the aims and objectives of the United Nations,” Jaishankar said.

United Nations, Sep 26: India’s right to defend itself against terrorism will be exercised and friendship and goodwill cannot co-exist with the scourge, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday, calling out Pakistan’s misrepresentation of facts in the UN General Assembly.

“Yesterday, a serial practitioner of terrorism misrepresented facts before this Assembly. Arguments were invoked to normalise terrorism and claim immunity from its consequences. That will not stand,” Jaishankar said, as he delivered India’s national statement at the General Debate at the high-level 81st session of the UN General Assembly.

“Our right to defend ourselves against terrorism will be exercised…. Friendship and goodwill cannot co-exist with terrorism. And understandings premised on that will naturally be called into question. It is for the perpetrator of terrorism to mend its ways,” he said, without naming Pakistan and the UNGA address by its Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Jaishankar said a persistent threat to peace has been the scourge of terrorism.

“That this could be state-sponsored, with cross-border purpose, makes it a direct affront to the global order. Governments indulging in such practices must be held accountable. There must be no dilution in our zero-tolerance approach towards terrorism. Its financial aspects, in particular, should be exposed and should be countered,” he said.

A day earlier, Sharif used the UN General Assembly podium to credit US President Donald Trump for his “timely intervention” in the 2025 conflict against India.

India had launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 last year, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that had killed 26 civilians. New Delhi has consistently denied any third-party intervention.

Sharif also raised the issue of Kashmir as well as the Indus Waters Treaty, which India has said will be held in abeyance until Pakistan, a global epicentre of terror, credibly and irrevocably ends its support for cross-border and all other forms of terrorism.

Jaishankar expressed hope that at the conclusion of this year’s General Debate, participating delegations will leave with a greater commitment to peace, development and prosperity.

“This cannot be an imposition, or even a negotiation; it must be a mindset, it must be an outlook, it must be a belief. In the lawns outside this building, are recorded the powerful words of Mahatma Gandhi, and that should serve as an inspiration for these times, and those words are that there is no way to peace; peace is the way.”

He also emphasised the need for reformed multilateralism, saying the globe is “now well on our way, towards a multi-polar world”. 

India also voiced appreciation for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ decade of service and dedication to the cause of multilateralism as head of the world organisation.

“India deeply values his many contributions, in particular, his personal support for Mission LiFE,” he said, referring to the ‘Mission Lifestyle for Environment’, an India-led “global mass movement” to promote sustainable living.

Jaishankar listed the efforts and measures undertaken by India towards contributions for the advancement of humanity. Amid turbulent times, he highlighted India’s role as a first responder catering to the needs and requirements of nations impacted by natural disasters and conflicts.

India has consistently sent medical shipments to conflict zones, epidemic locations, and after natural disasters.

“As a first responder, we were there early, be it the Nepal flash floods or the Venezuela earthquake…Whether to meet food and medicine shortages, energy and fertiliser needs, or creating livelihoods, India has contributed continuously and will do so. Our capacity-building and experience-sharing programmes have made a real difference across the Global South, especially in Africa,” he said.

“Even as India progresses, we are conscious of our global responsibilities. We know that many of our experiences and achievements are replicable elsewhere. The deep solidarity of the Global South has always encouraged us to share what we have,” he said.

On AI, he said it “will be very much part of our partnership agenda, with the Global South”.

India hosted the AI Impact Summit this February, gathering together the best minds on that subject.

“We view AI as a transformational driver for human empowerment, economic prosperity and population-scale problem solving. We believe in the right of each nation to shape its ecosystem, with the development of its own models, and deployment strategies, consistent with its national goals and priorities.”

He said that in a globalised world, “we must continuously and vigorously promote international understanding. Economic rebalancing is well underway; the political one is also visible, and the third facet – cultural rebalancing – must now be taken forward.”