French Foreign Minister Le Drian had a telephonic conversation today with External Affairs Minister Smt. Sushma Swaraj and informed her of the action taken by France to sanction Masood Azhar, Chief of the UN proscribed terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed,
which had claimed responsibility for the Pulwama terrorist attack on 14th February, 2019. France has sanctioned Masood Azhar at the national level by freezing his assets. French Foreign Minister also informed that France has raised this issue with the European
Union. He reiterated that France has always been and will always be on India's side in the fight against terrorism. External Affairs Minister thanked FM Le Drian for France's steadfast support and said that India looked forward to continuing this cooperation
on the anti-terrorism front. This action on the part of France was an expression of partnership with India and was in consonance with the global intent by responsible nations committed to fight against terror, including cross-border terrorism, anywhere in
the world.
New Delhi
March 15, 2019