In diplomatic win for India on Op Sindoor, Colombia withdraws statement sympathising with Pakistan

In a significant diplomatic win for India in its global outreach on Operation Sindoor—aimed at exposing Pakistan and reinforcing its zero-tolerance stance on terrorism—Colombia, which had earlier expressed sympathy over the loss of lives in Pakistan, has now withdrawn its statement. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, leading the all-party delegation to the Americas, expressed disappointment in Bogota over Colombia’s condolences for the loss of lives in Pakistan following India’s response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed 26 innocent civilian lives. He said India was disappointed with the Colombian government for expressing condolences over lives lost in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, instead of sympathising with the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack. On Friday, during the all-party delegation’s visit to Tadeo Lozano University in Bogota, Tharoor stated that Colombia will issue a strong statement supporting India’s position after withdrawing its condolence message for Pakistani casualties in the Indian strikes. “We met with the Foreign Ministry – the Senior Vice Minister received us. We had some good news: They have withdrawn their statement that disappointed us earlier and will issue a statement of strong support for our position and understanding of our position…,” Tharoor said. After meeting India’s all-party delegation, Colombia Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio said, “We are very confident 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…” Appreciating Colombian position on the matter after explaining India’s view and position, Tharoor said, “The Vice Minister very graciously mentioned that they have withdrawn the statement that we had expressed concern about and that they fully understand our position on the matter, which is something we really value.” Meanwhile, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, a member of the Indian delegation to Colombia, said that Bogota has withdrawn its earlier condolence reference for lives lost in Pakistan following India’s military response on May 7. “We met with Colombia’s Vice Foreign Minister Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio, and briefed her on the sequence of events, from the Pahalgam terror attack to India’s calibrated response under Operation Sindoor. In furtherance to our discussion, the Colombian government has withdrawn that communication, understanding that India’s response didn’t take any civilian lives but killed hardcore terrorists. We made it clear that while they killed tourists, we neutralised terrorists. An equivalence between the two can’t be made,” he said. Surya said Colombia extended full support to India’s fight against terrorism and expressed strong sympathy with country’s position. “This marks a significant diplomatic accomplishment for our delegation,” he added. After visiting Panama and Guyana, Tharoor and his delegation arrived in Colombia on Thursday. After concluding the Colombia visit, the all-party delegation will be heading to Brazil and the United States on Saturday. — with ANI

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