Modi invokes 9/11, points at 'roots of terror' in Pak

NEW DELHI/GENEVA: Invoking the 9/11 attack on America this day 18 year ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the roots of terrorism are being nourished in India's neighbourhood and asserted that New Delhi is fully competent to meet the challenge.

He said the entire world needs to take a pledge against this ideology, against those who are taking it forward and those giving shelter and training to terrorists.

Modi said his government's effort to strengthen anti-terror laws is a step forward in this direction.

Remembering the 9/11 attack, he said, September 11 is also a special day for another reason, as it was on this day a century back when Swami Vivekananda delivered his historic address in Chicago.

"Through that speech, the entire world thoroughly understood the culture and tradition of India. But it is unfortunate that on that very September 11, the 9/11 terrorist attack took place in the US, and it shook the entire world."

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has had contacts with the leadership in India and Pakistan, remains very concerned about any potential escalation between the two countries over Kashmir and appeals to both sides to deal with the issue through dialogue, his spokesperson said.

Guterres met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7 Summit last month in Biarritz, France and has also spoken to Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, UN chief's spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said at a daily press briefing here on Tuesday. Dujarric was responding to a question on whether Guterres plans to mediate between India and Pakistan on Kashmir during the UN General Assembly session later this month which would be attended by both Modi and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.

You know our position on mediation, as a matter of principle, has always remained the same, Dujarric said.