US backs Pakistan’s right to self-defence after UN votes on global counterterrorism strategy

WASHINGTON/UNITED NATIONS: The United States has reiterated its support for Pakistan’s right to defend itself against terrorist attacks, while the United Nations struggles to maintain consensus on its core global counterterrorism framework. “The Pakistani people have suffered greatly at the hands of terrorists,” the US State Department said, according to a statement reported by Reuters. Washington “supports Pakistan’s right to defend itself against terrorist attacks” as an intermittent conflict between Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan continues, the State Department added. The remarks come after Pakistan on Sunday night acted against terrorist infrastructure along the Afghan border, in response to a terrorist attack on a local headquarter of the Pakistan Rangers Sindh in Karachi’s Gulistan-i-Jauhar area. In February, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker had expressed similar support for Islamabad, saying Washington “continues to monitor the situation closely” and backs Pakistan’s right to defend itself against Taliban attacks. The brief note by the US State Department comes amid the ninth review of the United Nations Global Counterterrorism Strategy (GCTS), a global framework adopted in 2006 and periodically reviewed to guide international cooperation against terrorism. At the United Nations General Assembly, the US voted against the resolution and pushed for a recorded vote, breaking with the traditional consensus-based adoption of the strategy. Despite US objections, the General Assembly adopted the ninth review of the GCTS by 140 votes, including Pakistan, in favour on July 1. It adopted the ninth review by a recorded vote after consensus could not be reached. The US, Israel and Argentina voted against the resolution. Japan abstained but its delegate later stated that the abstention was the result of a technical error and his delegation intended to vote in favour. Washington described the draft as “bloated, outdated, and lacking fo