A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a veiled attack on China and Pakistan for “supporting terrorism,” Home Minister Amit Shah reiterated his position, claiming that some countries have made terrorism their “state policy,” and calling for a “strict economic crackdown” on such “terror havens.”
Terrorism, he said, has no international borders, and he asked all countries to “stand above their geopolitical interests” and battle the threat “shoulder to shoulder.”
In his closing remarks at the third ‘No Money for Terror’ (NMFT) conference here, Shah advocated the establishment of a permanent secretariat in India to maintain the focus on combatting terror financing.
Shah stated during the NMFT summit that the “time is right” for a permanent secretariat. According to security sources, the plan is still in its early stages.
Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who also spoke at the conference, made similar sentiments, pointing out the “use (of) terrorism as a tool of statecraft” by some, and saying the world must rise beyond political divides to combat the threat.
“The challenge, however, is that while the bad guys think global and lateral, the good guys still think national and vertical,” MEA Jaishankar said.
In his speech, Shah also recommended a five-pronged strategy to combat terror financing, including a “monitoring framework” for intelligence services to collaborate.
In calling for “beyond-border cooperation,” he emphasised the importance of full transparency in intelligence sharing among countries.
His comments are interpreted as a reference to Pakistan and current developments in Afghanistan, which have compelled the West to re-engage with Islamabad due to its influence in Kabul.
The Indian security establishment has seen the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) relief handed to Pakistan in this context, notwithstanding Islamabad’s continued funding for India-focused terror organisations.
