‘Right to defend ourselves’: Jaishankar says India expects partners to show zero tolerance on terrorism

External affairs minister S Jaishankar said in Mumbai on Tuesday that India expects its partners to show zero tolerance on terrorism as he thanked the US administration under President Donald Trump for extraditing 26/11 attack mastermind Tahawwur Hussain Rana.Track live updates on day 1 of Rubio's India visit“We are clear on the right to defend ourselves against terrorism and expect our partners show zero tolerance towards terrorism,” Jaishankar said, making an indirect reference to US ties with Pakistan, which is accused of harbouring terrorists and plotting against India.Jaishankar made the remarks – during his address on American Independence Day celebration event in Mumbai – as he mentioned the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, often called 26/11 attacks, in which coordinated shooting and bombing attacks took place across the city over four days, from November 26 to 29.

At least 175 people died in the attacks and over 300 were injured in one of the worst terror attacks in India. The attack was carried out by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a Pakistan-based terror outfit. Rubio's India visit Rubio arrived in Mumbai on Tuesday for a three-day visit. Rubio and Jaishankar met earlier in the day where the leaders, along with UAE's foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, where the leaders discussed regional energy security and way ahead on shared economic priorities.Jaishankar hosted Rubio for wide-ranging talks shortly after the top diplomat arrived in Mumbai for his second visit to India in under five months, even as bilateral ties remain strained over Washington's unpredictable trade policies and tightening immigration rules.Ahead of the meeting, the US Secretary of State described India as a crude oil refining "superpower" and advocated for processing more Venezuelan crude in India.

The US Secretary of State is scheduled to visit Reliance Industries Ltd-owned Jamnagar Refinery on Wednesday.Rubio, answering a question on the proposed India-US trade pact, said "a small number of items" are left to be wrapped up and hoped that it will be sealed "shortly"."I would say we're about as close as you can be without having an executed agreement. I think there's a small number of items left to wrap up.

So I think that will happen shortly -- we're hoping, which it should -- and hopefully have some good news to announce fairly soon. And perhaps the leaders can sign it thereafter," he said.Following the meeting, Jaishankar said on social media that he and Rubio "shared views on further advancement of our ties, focusing on trade, energy, technology, defence and people-to-people ties." The US State Department said the secretary and the external affairs minister discussed regional and global issues, including developments in West Asia."The secretary reiterated that increased energy trade with the United States can play a transformative role in diversifying India's supply chains while meeting its sizable consumer demand," it said.