Diplomatic win: Colombia withdraws pro-Pakistan statement after Tharoor’s ‘India disappointed’ remark

In a significant diplomatic victory for India, Colombia officially withdrew its statement sympathising with Pakistan after Operation Sindoor, hours after Congress MP Shashi Tharoor-led multi-party delegation expressed India’s ‘disappointment’ over it.

 

Colombia had expressed heartfelt condolences on the loss of lives in Pakistan in Operation Sindoor – India’s retaliatory military action on the intervening night of May 6-May 7 for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, which killed 26 people.

 

Tharoor, who is leading the delegation to five countries, including Colombia, to apprise them of India’s stand against terrorism and to expose Pakistan’s links to terror elements, had said at a press conference in Bogota that India was only exercising its right to self-defence.

 

Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio, after meeting the delegation, told ANI, “We are very confident that with the explanation that we received today and the detailed information that we now have regarding the real situation, the conflict, and what happened in Kashmir, we can also continue the dialogue.”

 

In a post on X, Tharoor confirmed that the minister had assured him that the earlier statement supporting Pakistan has been officially withdrawn and that India’s “position was now properly understood and strongly supported”.

 

The nine-member delegation also met former president Cesar Gaviria at his residence in Bogota. Gaviria is the head of the Liberal Party – the largest single party in the Colombian assembly.

 

The Tharoor-led delegation comprises Tejasvi Surya and Bhubaneswar Kalita (both BJP), Milind Deora (Shiv Sena), Shambhavi (LJP), G.M. Harish Balayogi (TDP) and former ambassador of India to US Taranjit Singh Sandhu. They have already travelled to Guyana and Panama, and will go to Brazil from Colombia.

 

The delegation will visit the United States in the last leg of its official trip.

 

Under Operation Sindoor, India struck nine terror infrastructures in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir, in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. Following this, the two countries were involved in a military conflict till a ceasefire was announced on May 10.

India