The terrorist attack by the Pakistan based Jaish-e-Mohammed Pulwama in India’s Jammu and Kashmir has heightened a sense of regional terrorism in South Asia.

On the 14th February, the militant group launched a suicide attack on a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) convey killing over 40 security personnel.

Pakistani spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) apparatus is still providing shelter to the anti-American Taliban group even as it had joined US-led allies on the war against terrorism.

What might be the Indian punitive action against Pakistan over the terror attack in Kashmir is still a matter of speculation. However, Pakistani-backed terrorism threat in the South Asian region is getting serious. Pakistani intelligence establishment still uses terrorism as its tool. Pakistan is a safe haven to terrorist outfits such as Jaish-e-Mohammed Lashkar-e Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen, among others.

Pakistani spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) apparatus is still providing shelter to the anti-American Taliban group even as it had joined US-led allies on the war against terrorism.

It should not be forgotten that the ISI had used Haqqani Network to launch vicious attacks on the U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan as well as in the US Embassy in Kabul.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh, which has suffered from Pakistani-based terrorist outfits, has been cracking down on the ISI-backed terror groups, including Harkat-ul Jihad Islami in its territory.

What is even more worrying is that Pakistan uses the third-country ground for their hostile acts against its neighboring countries.

Pakistan has been using its proxy terrorist outfits against neighboring countries such as Afghanistan, India or even Iran. Pakistani intelligence facilitates the entry of Maldivian nationals in Afghanistan who are trained to become Jihadists in Afghanistan.

In fact, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) faces an uncertain future with one of its members Pakistan, pampering various terrorist outfits.

What is even more worrying is that Pakistan uses the third-country ground for their hostile acts against its neighboring countries.

Defeating terrorism is not possible without a decisive action against Pakistan. One option would be a direct counterterrorism target on the Pakistani soil. But these need to be more than the U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan and Abbottabad raid that had killed al-Qaeda leader Bin Laden.

The question now is how Nepal engages with Pakistan and how it can play a key role in contributing to the security of neighboring India and the SARRC region.

We cannot afford to damage our relations with India at the cost of Pakistan. Nepal should remain alert on Pakistan’s activities and it should bolster counterterrorism cooperation with India, regional nations and the United States.

It is an open secret that Pakistan for long has been active in Nepal especially on the Indian border area. It has often come to fore how Pakistan used Nepal to transport fake Indian currency to India.

Prime Minister KP Oli telephoned Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and condemned Thursday’s terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir. In a tweet, PM Oli stated he also conveyed ‘our heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the families of the victims’.

Pakistan’s ties with radical extremists remain a threat to Nepal as well. Pakistan should be held accountable for its terrorist tactics throughout the region. Nepal also should take a firm stand in forcing Pakistan in not harboring terrorist groups and protecting them or sponsoring terrorist activities against India or other countries.

Pakistan is reported to have inclined to operate from Nepal in launching terrorist acts against India. That is why it wants to maintain close diplomatic ties with Nepal. After two decades of Benazir Bhutto’s diplomatic visit to Nepal in 1994, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaquan visited Nepal on March 5, 2018.

Prime Minister KP Oli telephoned Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and condemned Thursday’s terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir. In a tweet, PM Oli stated he also conveyed ‘our heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the families of the victims’.

However, a mere expression of condolences at the hour of crisis is not enough. Nepal needs to take concrete action in cooperation with India to force Pakistan in renouncing terrorist activities.