Hummingbird News Desk
NEW DELHI, 17 SEP: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that the change in power in Afghanistan is not inclusive and it happened without negotiation.
Speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) – Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) Outreach Summit through video conference, PM Modi said, “… This raises questions over acceptance of the new system. The representation of women, minorities and all sections of Afghan society is essential.”
If instability and fundamentalism continued in Afghanistan, it could lead to encouragement to extremist ideology across the globe, he said addressing the SCO-CSTO outreach summit on Afghanistan held in Dushanbe. Other extremist organisations could also feel emboldened to grab power by indulging in violence, he added.
Pointing out that the entire region faced the threat of terrorism, Modi said, “We all must ensure that Afghanistan’s territory is not used for exporting terrorism to other countries.”
The SCO countries should jointly devise norms to fight terror. These norms should be based on the principle of ‘zero tolerance’ for terrorism, he added.
He said weapons in huge quantities have been left behind by foreign troops in Afghanistan. This could pose a serious challenge to the security of the entire region.
In an oblique reference to Pakistan’s continued support of terrorist activities in India, he said there should also be a code of conduct to put an end to cross-border terrorism and terrorist financing.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Taliban seized the country without having formal deliberations with the democratic-elected government under Ashraf Ghani on 15 August.
In its interim government formation, the Taliban did not include the members of minorities, other ethnic groups and women in its Council of ministers.
Raising apprehensions about the new dispensation in the war-ravaged country, the prime minister said, “Neighbouring nations like us have been mostly affected by the chain of events that are taking place in Afghanistan. So, regional focus and regional cooperation are very important in this context.”
He, further, said that the recent developments in the war-torn country can lead to an increase in the trafficking of illegal arms, drugs and human trafficking.
He also spoke about India’s experience of using digital technologies in its development programmes, and offered to share these open-source solutions with other SCO members.
While speaking about the importance of building connectivity in the region, Prime Minister stressed that connectivity projects should be transparent, participatory and consultative, in order to promote mutual trust.
The SCO Summit was followed by an Outreach session on Afghanistan between SCO and the CSTO. Prime Minister participated in the outreach session through a video-message.
The 21st meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of State was held on 17 September 2021 in Dushanbe in hybrid format.
The meeting was chaired by H.E. Emomali Rahmon, the President of Tajikistan. At Dushanbe, India was represented by External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar.
Tags: #NarendraModi #SCO #CSTO #Afghanistan