As the United States has designated The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of the Pakistan-based LeT, as a global terrorist organisation, the move has been welcomed by former diplomat and senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor. The Thiruvananthapuram MP expressed hope on Saturday that the decision would increase international pressure on Pakistan to act against terror outfits operating from its soil.
This follows US President Donald Trump’s strong call for justice in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that claimed the lives of 26 people.
In a post on X, Shashi Tharoor said, “I welcome the US @StateDept’s designation of TheResistanceFront, the Lashkar proxy that claimed credit for #Pahalgam, as a terrorist organisation, adding pressure on Pakistan to curb its activities & bring it to heel.”
In another post, Tharoor shared his insights from recent meetings in Washington.
“In my private conversations in Washington, when I asked people bluntly why the US was still allowing Pakistan to get away with providing a safe haven to terrorist organisations, I was pointed to Pakistan’s alleged cooperation with the US on counter-terror operations, notably the recent surrender of the individual allegedly responsible for the Abbey Gate bombing that had killed 23 US Marines at Kabul Airport,” the Congress MP stated.
Highlighting the need for consistent global action, Tharoor added, “Our scepticism about the quality and sincerity of Pakistani actions against terrorism reflects our own experience with those terror agencies that are directed against us, rather than those that the US deems hostile, such as ISIS–Khorasan. This is a step towards bridging the gap in perceptions between the US and us on this. It will help in our efforts to list TRF at the @UN as well.”
The TRF had claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam attack, the deadliest terrorist strike on Indian civilians since the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Following the incident, US President Trump had personally called Prime Minister Narendra Modi to offer condolences and express unwavering US support in bringing the perpetrators to justice.
On Thursday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio formally announced the inclusion of TRF in the list of designated Foreign Terrorist Organisations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs).
“This action demonstrates the Trump Administration’s commitment to protecting our national security interests, countering terrorism, and enforcing President Trump’s call for justice for the Pahalgam attack,” Rubio had said.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had raised the issue during recent meetings with Rubio and at the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting in Washington, underscoring India’s call for coordinated global action against terror proxies like TRF.
Meanwhile, an all-party parliamentary delegation led by Shashi Tharoor visited Washington last month to brief US lawmakers and officials about the role of TRF and Pakistan’s continued support for terror infrastructure. The designation is being hailed as a milestone in India-US counter-terror cooperation and a major step forward in holding state sponsors of terrorism accountable.
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