One of the greatest contributions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is that India today stands vindicated internationally so far as Pakistan and terrorism are concerned, said Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office (PMO) Jitendra Singh here on Saturday.
Responding to US President Donald Trump's recent statement over escalating tension between Indian and Pakistan due to ghastly Pulwama terror attack, Singh said: "I would not like to respond directly what has been said because that is for the Ministry of External Affairs and concerned agencies. However, one of the greatest contributions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is that India today stands vindicated on the international arena."
"In general I think what all of us must realize and appreciate is that ever since the Modi government came to power, even those countries of the world which were earlier totally not convinced or not amenable to India's point of view as far as Pakistan and fight against terrorism is concerned, are now accepting India's point of view," he said.
Speaking on the issue of Kashmir, Singh said: "The only issue we are concerned about is Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and to retrieve back the illegally occupied part of Jammu and Kashmir which continues to remain under the forced occupation of Pakistan even after 71 years of independence."
US President Donald Trump on Friday said India is looking at "something very strong" after last week's Pulwama terror attack, the responsibility for which was claimed by Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM).
He also outlined that there are currently a "lot of problems between India and Pakistan" due to the terrorist attack, saying, "We're talking. A lot of people are talking. It's going to be a very, very delicate balance. Right now there is a lot of problem between India and Pakistan because of what just happened in Kashmir."
The incumbent US President also brought attention to the cessation of payments--which amounted to the US $1.3 billion--to Pakistan.
"I stopped paying Pakistan US $ 1.3 billion that we were paying them. In the meantime, we may set up some meetings with Pakistan. Pakistanwas taking very strong advantage of the United States under other Presidents. We were paying Pakistan US $ 1.3 billion a year," Trump said.
"I ended that payment because they were not helping us in a way they should have and honestly we've developed a much better relationship with Pakistan over the last short period of time than we have. I ended the payment about 9 months ago," Trump highlighted.
The US President's comments come at a time when there is mounting international pressure on Pakistan to stop harbouring terrorism on its soil. The United States had, immediately after the February 14 terrorist attack, told Pakistan to stop providing a safe haven and support to terrorists.
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)