Quad ‘unequivocally’ condemns Pahalgam terror attack, urges justice for victims

Foreign ministers of the Quad group — the US, India, Japan, and Australia — issued a joint statement on Wednesday (July 2) condemning the April 22 terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in which 26 people were killed.

The Quad members have also called for bringing the perpetrators, organisers and financiers of the Pahalgam terror attack to justice without any delay and urged UN member nations to extend cooperation for it.

In the joint statement, the foreign ministers of the Quad nations, however, did not mention Pakistan or the four-day military conflict between the Indian and Pakistani militaries in May.

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Quad condemns Pahalgam attack

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Foreign Ministers Penny Wong of Australia and Takeshi Iwaya of Japan representing the major democracies of the Indo-Pacific region met for their second ministerial meeting of the year.

"The Quad unequivocally condemns all acts of terrorism and violent extremism in all its forms and manifestations, including cross-border terrorism, and renews our commitment to counterterrorism cooperation. We condemn in the strongest terms the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir on April 22, 2025, which claimed the lives of 25 Indian nationals and one Nepali citizen, while injuring several others," the joint statement read.

While the Quad members’ statement did not explicitly name Pakistan, it clearly conveyed its stance by referencing “cross-border terrorism” and condemning the Pahalgam terror attack.

India's right to respond

Jaishankar strongly condemned the Pahalgam terror attack and referred to India's recent counterterrorism response, including Operation Sindoor.

“A word about terrorism in the light of our recent experience — the world must display zero tolerance,” he said in an apparent reference to the Pahalgam terror attack.

“Victims and perpetrators must never be equated. And India has every right to defend its people against terrorism, and we will exercise that right. We expect our Quad partners to understand and appreciate that,” he added.

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India slams Pakistan

On Monday, while inaugurating an exhibition titled 'The Human Cost of Terrorism' at the UN headquarters in US, Jaishankar slammed Pakistan (without naming it) over the terror attack.

He said it is imperative to call out terrorism publicly when it is supported by a state against a neighbour and is fuelled by the bigotry of extremism, a strong reference to Pakistan.

He stressed that the pain of the families of the victims of terrorism "is a stark reminder of the urgency of our shared responsibility to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations."

"Terrorism is one of the gravest threats to humanity. It is the antithesis of everything that the UN stands for - human rights, rules and norms and how nations should conduct their dealings with each other," he said.

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Quad ports in Mumbai

The Quad meeting also announced the grouping's plan to launch Quad Ports of the Future partnership in Mumbai this year.

“To ensure the Quad’s enduring impact, we are pleased to announce today a new, ambitious, and strong agenda focused on four key areas: maritime and transnational security, economic prosperity and security, critical and emerging technology, and humanitarian assistance and emergency response. Through this renewed focus, we will sharpen the Quad’s ability to leverage our resources to address the region’s most pressing challenges,” the ministers added.

While their joint statement repeatedly spoke of threats to countries in the region from the use of force and coercion by China, they did not name it.

The Ministers said they remained seriously concerned about the situation in the East China Sea and the South China Sea.

"We reiterate our strong opposition to any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion," they said, referring to Chinese military actions.

Also Read: Jaishankar says India won't accept SCO statement without reference to terrorism

Call for peace

To strengthen the Quad’s ability to carry out relief in natural disasters — a mission that gave initial shape to the group — the ministers said they plan to host the first Quad Indo-Pacific Logistics Network field training exercise this year.

It aims “to strengthen shared airlift capacity and leverage our collective logistics strengths to respond to natural disasters more rapidly and efficiently, providing support for regional partners,” the statement said.

They condemned North Korea’s missile and nuclear weapons programmes and demanded that it follow United Nations Security Council resolutions and end them.

They also expressed “grave concern over North Korea’s malicious cyber activity, including cryptocurrency theft and use of workers abroad to fund North Korea’s unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.”

The ministers also said they were “deeply concerned by the worsening crisis in Myanmar and its impact on the region.” They called on the military regime and all groups involved “to implement, extend and broaden ceasefire measures.”