US should not repeat Iraq-like mistake in Afghanistan, cautions Modi

New York: Hours ahead of his dinner with President Barack Obama, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday cautioned the US against hasty withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan, citing the mistakes it has committed while pulling out from Iraq.

Modi told the Council on Foreign Relations here that India and the US together had played a big role in Afghanistan in recent years.

India, he said, had told the US that the process of withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan should be slow to stop the rise of Taliban.

"We want Afghanistan which recently held the Presidential elections and formed a new government to grow democratically," he said.
"The process of withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan should be very slow. Afghanistan should be allowed to stand on its feet and then only can it stop the rise of the Taliban," Modi said.

Rejecting any distinction between good and bad terrorism, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today called for a collective fight to effectively tackle the global menace.

"There is no good terrorism or bad terrorism. Terrorism has no boundary or country," Modi said.

"There is a need to take the challenge of terrorism seriously. It's sad that many countries could not earlier understand the ugly face of terrorism, which is enemy of humanity," he said.

"We want to take our economy ahead on the three pillars of agriculture, manufacturing and services," Modi said.

He said in its very first budget, his government took initiatives on foreign direct investment.

"We want private investment in our railways," he said, adding that trillions and trillions of dollars are required for the modernisation of this vital sector.

On his ambitious plan to clean the Ganga river, Modi said, "We are conscious about the environment and are making efforts to clean the Ganga."

He said India has a guiding philosophy inspired by Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi. "We believe in non-violence," he added.