US, UK, France move UNSC afresh against Jaish chief Masood Azhar
28 Feb 2019
The US, the UK and France have moved a fresh proposal in the United Nations Security Council to designate Masood Azhar, chief of Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Muhamad, as a global terrorist – the fourth attempt to put Masood Azhar on the UN terror blacklist.
On all occasions, China, a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council, had come as a saviour of Pakistan and its JeM. China blocked all proposals to impose sanctions on Masood Azhar, a listing that will subject him to global travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo.
The Security Council Sanctions Committee will have 10 working days to consider the fresh proposal submitted by the three permanent veto-wielding members of the 15-nation Security Council.
The proposal is the fourth such bid at the UN in the last 10 years to list Azhar as a global terrorist. China
In 2009, India moved the firsy proposal to designate Azhar, whose UN-proscribed Jaish-e-Mohammed and in 2016 again, India moved the proposal with the P3 - the United States, the United Kingdom and France in the UN’s 1267 Sanctions Committee to ban Azhar, who also is the mastermind of the attack on the air base in Pathankot in January 2016. In 2017, the P3 nations moved a similar proposal. However, all these proposals came to nought with China blocking the proposals from being adopted by the Sanctions Committee.
India has strongly reiterated its appeal to all members of the international community to support the proposal to list terrorists, including Azhar, as designated terrorists under the 1267 Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council, and to ban terrorist organisations operating from territories controlled by Pakistan.
It remains to be seen how China will vote on the proposal this time.