Nuclear threats will not deter India's resolve: All-party delegation in Latvia

Riga, May 31 The all-party delegation led by DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi met Parliamentarians of Latvia, highlighting that India will not tolerate any nuclear threat and will respond accordingly to any act of terrorism.

The leaders conveyed India's united commitment to zero tolerance against terrorism and the new doctrine for dealing with terrorist threats.

The meeting was joined by Ingrida Circene, Chairperson of the group for promoting cooperation with the Parliament of India, and Inara Murniece, Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee, along with other members of both the committees of Saeima, the Parliament of Latvia.

The Kanimozhi-led parliamentarians include Samajwadi Party MP Rajeev Rai, BJP MP Captain Brijesh Chowta (Retd.); RJD MP Prem Chand Gupta, AAP MP Ashok Kumar Mittal; and Former Deputy Permanent Representative of India to the UN, Ambassador Manjeev Singh Puri.

"During the visit, we had the opportunity to meet Ingrida Circene, Chairperson of the Group for Promoting Cooperation with the Parliament on India, and H.E. Ms. Inara Murniece, Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee, along with other esteemed members of both committees of the Saeima. In our discussions, we conveyed India's unified and unwavering stance of zero tolerance towards terrorism," Ashok Mittal posted on X on Saturday.

"We also shared our evolving national doctrine -- that every act of terrorism, along with those who support or perpetrate it, will be treated as an assault on our national security. We emphasised that even nuclear threats will not deter India's resolve. We deeply appreciate the strong condemnation of the Pahalgam terror attack by our Latvian counterparts, and their clear position that terrorism in all its forms must be opposed without exception," the post added.

The delegation also met State Secretary Andzejs Vilumson and Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics, Special Envoy for Latvia's UNSC Candidacy and shared facts on the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

Vilumson reiterated Latvia's strong condemnation of the terror attack in Pahalgam in April, and its unequivocal opposition to terrorism in all its forms.

The Latvian side also noted "India as a significant player in the Indo-Pacific region for peace and stability. The delegation expressed thanks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his visit to Ukraine last September," the Embassy posted.

Earlier, India's Ambassador to Latvia Namrata S. Kumar briefed the all-party delegation on India-Latvia relations and Latvia's role in the Baltics, the European Union and the United Nations.

She earlier welcomed the delegation on their arrival to Latvia at the Riga International Airport.

The visit is taking place in the context of the April 22 terrorist attack in India in Pahalgam, anti-terror Operation Sindoor launched by India and subsequent developments.

They will also hold meetings with high officials of the Government of the Republic of Latvia, members from academia, media, Indian diaspora and other stakeholders.

The Indian parliamentarians also paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi at the National Library of Latvia in Riga.

The delegates are carrying forth India's united stand and strong message of "zero-tolerance towards terrorism in all its forms" and the steadfast resolution defined in India's new doctrine for countering terrorism, its supporters and the perpetrators of cross-border terrorism.

"India and Latvia share strong bilateral relations at political and people-to-people level. Immediately after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, in its April 22 statement on X, expressing the deepest condolences to the victims of the terror attack strongly condemned terrorism in all its forms," Indian Embassy in Riga said in a statement.

"The visit of the all-party parliamentary delegation to Latvia, the first high-level visit from India to Latvia after the opening of India's new resident Mission in Riga in July 2024, is a testament to the growing and strengthening of India-Latvia relations and, India's commitment to work closely with the like-minded countries as Latvia and the international community in the fight against terrorism in all its forms," the statement added.

The delegation, a part of India's global diplomatic outreach campaign to highlight the significance of Operation Sindoor and India's continued fight against Pakistan-sponsored cross-border terrorism, reached Latvia following successful engagements in Greece, Slovenia and Russia, reaffirming India's firm stance on combating terrorism.

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