New Delhi: India and Russia have called for elimination, “once and for all,” of all safe havens of terrorists during a meeting of the Joint Working Group (JWG) on Counter Terrorism.
The two sides, without naming Pakistan directly, underlined the urgent need for “meaningful, credible, irreversible, verifiable and sustainable action” against terrorists and terrorist groups at the 11th meeting of the JWG.
The lndian delegation was led by Vijay Thakur Singh, secretary (East) in ministry of external affairs while the Russian delegation was led by Mr. Oleg V. Syromolotov, Deputy Foreign Minister of Russian Federation. A former intelligence officer, Mr Syromolotov is known for his remarkable work in fighting terrorism in Russia.
In a statement issued after the talks that lasted close to three hours, both sides condemned terrorism “in all its forms and manifestations” and emphasised the need for strengthening international cooperation to combat terrorism “in a comprehensive and sustained manner without any double standards.”
The two sides also exchanged views on threats posed by terrorist entities globally and in their respective regions as well as ongoing concerns over terrorism in the South Asia region.
During their last meeting held in 2018, the two sides had discussed the issue of emergence of the Af-Pak region as the epicentre of terrorism. The latest statement shows that Pakistan this time too remained in focus of discussions.
“Both sides highlighted their efforts on some of the world’s most pressing counter-terrorism challenges including countering radicalisation and extremism, misuse of intemet for terrorist purposes, movement of foreign fighters and combating financing of terrorism including drug trafficking,” the statement issued after the talks said.
The two sides also deliberated upon measures to deepen counter-terrorism cooperation by intensifying exchange of information, regular meetings at experts level, sharing of best practices and capacity building efforts.
