Washington: Former Pakistani foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto had to be reminded once again of how his mother Benazir Bhutto was killed by terrorists in 2007 in Rawalpindi.
This took place in Washington after Congress MP Shashi Tharoor trained his guns on the Pakistani politician, who is heading a delegation to the US that aims to dilute India’s concerns about Pakistan-backed terrorism.
Tharoor invoked Hillary Clinton’s famous rebuke to take on Bhutto. “How can you breed vipers in your backyard and expect them to bite only your neighbours,” he said.
Tharoor is also leading an Indian all-party delegation to the US to highlight India’s firm stance against terrorism. The diplomatic face-off in Washington comes in the wake of Operation Sindoor, following the Pahalgam terror attack.
While India has deployed seven delegations across 33 countries, Pakistan’s smaller diplomatic initiative just covers Washington, New York, Brussels, London, and Moscow.
“The message must be spread as widely as possible — through media, diaspora, and direct government outreach,” Tharoor said.
The Pakistani delegation has also been going around complaining about India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty. India suspended this treaty a day after 26 people, mostly tourists from across the country, were killed by terrorists in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22.
Speaking about this decision, Tharoor had earlier said: “The time for acting on the basis of goodwill unilaterally is frankly no longer with us.”
Tharoor highlighted the country’s balanced approach, noting, “We sympathise with victims of terror wherever they may be. I remember Parliament once passed a resolution condemning a terrorist attack that killed 40 schoolchildren in Pakistan. But it’s very difficult to sympathise with the Pakistani authorities who have unfortunately created this phenomenon.”