(Video) Rajya Sabha TV (RSTV) The Big Picture: Bid to Blacklist Masood Azhar

Topic: Bid to Blacklist Masood Azhar

Guest:

Vivek Katju, (Former Ambassador)
Maj. Gen. Dhruv C. Katoch, (Director, India Foundation)
Prof. Harsh V Pant, (Head, Strategic Studies, Observer Research Foundation)

Topic Description:

The United States on Wednesday circulated a draft resolution to the UN Security Council that would blacklist JeM chief Masood Azhar as a terrorist, setting up a potential clash with China over the move. China earlier this month put on hold a request to put Masood Azhar on the UN sanctions list. That request stalled in a UN sanctions committee, prompting the U.S. to turn directly to the Security Council with the proposed resolution blacklisting Azhar. Jaish-e-Mohammad claimed responsibility for the February 14 attack in Kashmir that killed 40 Indian troops and stoked tensions between India and Pakistan. The draft resolution obtained by media organization AFP condemns the suicide bombing and decides that Azhar will be added to the UN Al-Qaeda and Islamic State sanctions blacklist. It remained unclear when a vote would be held on the draft resolution, which could face a veto from China, one of the five permanent council members along with Britain, France, Russia and the United States. There have been four attempts through a UN sanctions committee to add Azhar to the blacklist. China blocked three previous requests and put a technical hold on the latest one, which could last up to nine months. On this edition of the big picture we will analyse the new move by the US to blacklist Masood Azhar at the UN.