China delayed on Wednesday a proposal by the United States and India to sanction at the U.N. Security Council a top commander in the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant group, diplomats said.
India and the United States wanted Abdul Rauf Azhar to be subjected to a global travel ban and asset freeze. Such a move has to be agreed by all 15 members of a Security Council sanctions committee.
"We placed a hold because we need more time to study the case. Placing holds is provided for by the Committee guidelines, and there have been quite a number of similar holds by Committee members on listing requests," a spokesperson for China's mission to the United Nations told Reuters.
The U.S. Treasury designated Azhar in 2010, accusing him of urging Pakistanis to engage in militant activities and organize suicide attacks in India.
The United States respects other countries needs to verify that a sanctions proposal meets their "domestic evidentiary threshold to justify a listing at the U.N.," a spokesperson for the U.S. mission to the United Nations said on Wednesday.
"The United States values cooperation with our Security Council partners to effectively use this tool in an apolitical way to stop terrorists from exploiting the global order to do their misdeeds," the spokesperson said.
(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Alistair Bell)
