Need resolute action against those who fund terrorists: Modi at HoA meet

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani jointly inaugurated the sixth Heart of Asia Ministerial Conference in Amritsar on Sunday.

The two leaders spoke for an hour and discussed terrorism and development-related issues, said a report.

“The project of Chabahar Port between India, Afghanistan and Iran is very important to us for connectivity,” Ghani said addressing the Conference.

“Heart of Asia is meeting at time of great opportunity in significant threats for Afghanistan for Asia-wide and global implications,” he added.

Ghani said that Afghanistan has enduring and strong ties with India in its quest towards development.

“India's support to Afghanistan is aimed at improving people's life. It is transparent with no strings attached,” the Afghan President said.

“Afghanistan suffered the highest number of casualties last year. This is unacceptable. About 30 terrorist groups, as named by the UN, are trying to establish a base in our country,” Ghani said.

We need to identify cross-border terrorism and a fund to combat terrorism, he added.

Slamming Pakistan, Ghani told Sartaj Aziz that the 500 million dollars pledged by Pakistan for Afghanistan's development can be spent to contain extremism instead. Highlighting Pakistan's role in terrorism, Ghani said that a key Taliban leader has himself admitted to getting sanctuary in Pakistan.

“Our words and actions remain focus on building, strengthening & securing Afghanistan’s territory and its citizens from external threats,” Narendra Modi said responding to Ghani’s praise of India for helping Afghanistan unconditionally.

“Our gathering today re-affirms the commitment of the international community to durable peace & lasting stability in Afghanistan,” he added.

Modi said the world must display strong willpower to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear.

“Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters. Terrorism and externally induced instability pose the gravest threat too Afghanistan’s peace, stability and prosperity,” Modi said.

“On India’s part, our commitment to our brave Afghan brothers and sisters is absolute and unwavering,” Modi reiterated.

Modi said that Asia needs to fight not only against forces of terrorism but also against those who support, shelter and finance them.

“As such, support for voices of peace in Afghanistan alone is not enough. It must be backed by a resolute action,” he added.

The PM said that India’s bilateral and regional commitments of material assistance for Afghanistan’s development needs must continue and increase.

Modi announced that India and Afghanistan would soon be connected through an air transport corridor.

He also said that the Herat India-Afghanistan dam that was launched a few months ago will help revive economic activity for the people there.

The Conference will discuss peace, cooperation and economic development in Afghanistan.

The theme for this year's conference is 'Addressing Challenges, Achieving Prosperity'.

India says a basket of six confidence-building measures would be discussed during the conference.

Earlier, Sartaj Aziz, Advisor to Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif spoke with Ashraf Ghani.

Modi had on Saturday night told Aziz at a multilateral conference of foreign ministers that Pakistan must rein in terrorism in order to achieve stability in the region. He said Afghans were ‘tired’ of terrorism.

At the Ministerial Conference, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley led the Indian delegation in place of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj who is unwell.

Heart of Asia process was launched in 2011 from Istanbul. Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the event in Amritsar.

Eleven Companies of Para Military forces and more than five thousand policemen have been deployed in the city to ensure smooth conduct of the conference.

On Saturday, senior officials of the Heart of Asia process discussed finalising the Amritsar Declaration and adopting the Regional Counter Terrorism Framework drafted by Afghanistan.

Afghanistan's Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai chaired the meeting with Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar.

Senior officials of all 14 countries and representatives of 17 supporting nations deliberated on a vast range of issues including strategies for eliminating terrorism and enhancing Afghanistan's connectivity and trade.