External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Friday said the number of threats endangering peace and stability in South Asia are on the rise, in an apparent reference to Pakistan, PTI reported. She said regional prosperity, connectivity and cooperation can only take place in an atmosphere of peace and security.
“It is necessary for our region’s survival that we eliminate the scourge of terrorism in all its forms, without any discrimination, and end the ecosystem of its support,” Swaraj said, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session in New York.
On Wednesday, Swaraj had said that acts of terrorism can never be justified. While speaking at the ad-hoc Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting of foreign ministers in New York, she had said, “India strongly condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.”
On Friday, Swaraj met US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson when she raised the matter of H-1B visas that allows the companies in the United States to employ skilled workers from abroad, most sought after by Indian professionals, PTI reported. The two leaders also discussed various bilateral matters, including with a focus on Pakistan, Afghanistan and terrorism, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.
Swaraj also expressed concern over the scrapping of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy that grants work permits to immigrants who arrived to the US illegally as children. She said nearly 8,000 undocumented immigrants from India could be deported because of this move, Hindustan Times reported.
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