Jaishankar Says Lack of US Understanding on India’s Cross-Border Terrorism Concerns Impacts Ties

External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar has expressed concern over the lack of understanding and empathy in the US towards India’s concerns over cross-border terrorism, saying the issue is impacting bilateral ties.

  

Jaishankar was addressing prominent members of the Indian-American and diaspora community as well as policy experts at a special conversation hosted by the Asia Society as the high-level week of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York concluded on Monday.

  

Speaking about India’s concerns over terrorism, Jaishankar said, ”What for us in India is particularly important is the issue of terrorism. There are very few countries which have been subjected to the kind of terrorism that we have from a neighbour as part of a deliberate, conscious policy over many decades. It is something which matters so deeply to us. There isn’t enough understanding or appreciation or empathy of that. I think that creates a problem Too…”

 

Jaishankar also spoke about India-China relations and said ties between the two countries have improved compared to 2025 and even more compared to 2024.

  

He said, “If you asked me, compared to where you were in 2025, is the relationship better today? I would say yes. Compared to 2024, even more so. Atter what happened in 2020 and the long standoff that we had on the border, the relationship had really been impacted..once the border standoff was resolved, it was natural that this would start to improve.

 

We have long been telling the Chinese, personally at my level, that a standoff between us, a dip in our relationship, doesn’t help either of us. Third parties will take advantage of that. It took a little while for the Chinese side to agree with that, for whatever reason. But I don’t think that long standoff served our interests.

 

It certainly didn’t serve theirs..what we’ve had is that, as the border comes back more towards normalcy, the relationship comes back more towards normalcy..If it happens, it helps both of us.”

 

(With agency inputs)