India refuses to sign SCO statement over omission of Pahalgam attack, includes Balochistan mention

India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh has declined to sign the joint statement at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers’ meeting in Qingdao.

The decision came after the draft text failed to mention the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 tourists, while it included references to incidents in Balochistan, perceived as implicit accusations against India.

Singh criticised the omission, stating, “India is not satisfied with the language of the joint document… there was no mention of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam… India refused to sign the joint declaration, and there is no joint communique either,” according to Indian officials.

In his remarks, Singh asserted that the Pahalgam attack “matches with Lashkar-e-Taiba’s previous terror attacks in India,” and underlined India’s declaration of zero tolerance toward terrorism.

He referenced Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 to dismantle cross-border terror infrastructure.

Warning against “double standards,” he made a veiled critique of Pakistan’s alleged use of cross-border terrorism as state policy: “Some countries use cross-border terrorism as an instrument of policy and provide shelter to terrorists,” emphasising that SCO members “should not hesitate to criticise such nations."

India’s refusal led to no joint declaration at the meeting, highlighting a rare public divergence within a bloc that includes Pakistan, China, and Russia.