Beijing, October 23: China on Tuesday said there was no change in its position on India's request to list Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the United Nations. China said its stand on Masood Azhar is based on the “merits of the matter”. China's clarification came a day after India asked Beijing to support the pending application in the UN to designate Azhar as a global terrorist.

“As per to India’s request for the listing of Masood (Azhar) we already stated our position for many times. On the counter-terrorism issue, China has always actively participated in international anti-terrorist operations. We have always made our decisions and judgements on the merits of the matter itself,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said. Masood Azhar Critical, Bed-Ridden After Suffering From Life-Threatening Disease: Report.

China also dismissed the allegation of sheltering hardline United Liberation Front Of Assam (ULFA) leader Paresh Baruah, saying it adheres to the policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries. “I shall stress that the Chinese government has always adhered to the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries. This remains unchanged," Hua said.

A veto-wielding permanent member of the UN Security Council, China has repeatedly blocked India’s bid at the United Nations to list Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Azhar as a global terrorist. It blocked India’s efforts to designate Azhar under the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council citing lack of consensus among the members of the Council.

Azhar is accused of several deadly terrorist attacks in India, including one on the Uri military base in Kashmir in 2016 in which 17 security personnel were killed. (With PTI inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 23, 2018 06:53 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).