Ajit Doval, national security adviser, extended the offer while attending the Kazakhstan-hosted second meeting of security officials from India and Central Asia. Noting that Central Asia and India share similar security challenges, he asserted that the shared region is threatened by “malicious actors operating through interconnected networks.”

Doval stated that the gathering is taking place during a period of profound global challenges, when dialogue is the only viable means of resolving conflicts and disagreements. It is imperative that all conflict resolution endeavors revolve around diplomacy, and India supports constructive and enduring dialogue with every Central Asian nation.

He stated that terrorism, in all its manifestations and forms, continues to be one of the gravest threats to international security, and that such acts are unjustifiable, irrespective of motivation or cause. He characterized drug trafficking as a grave threat frequently exploited by terrorist organizations and organized crime syndicates, and emphasized the critical nature of coordinating efforts to combat this issue.

Doval provided comprehensive, fully-funded capacity-building initiatives across various domains to combat terrorism and narcotics trafficking.

Doval stated that India will collaborate closely with Central Asian nations to assist them in constructing cyber defenses and establishing a secure cyber ecosystem. He extended invitations to the heads of cyber security agencies from Central Asian nations to visit India for a “strategic cyber experience.” This was done with the understanding that enhancing cooperation in this field requires capacity development and understanding of shared experiences.

Doval further delineated precise measures to enhance connectivity and economic integration with Central Asia, asserting that this constitutes a paramount objective for India. He stated that India is willing to provide Central Asian states with United Payment Interface (UPI) technology at no cost and to assist in the establishment of sovereign digital real-time payment systems tailored to the requirements of these nations.

These systems will benefit entrepreneurs, individuals seeking medical treatment in India, and Indian students studying in Central Asia by strengthening commercial ties.

Doval suggested that an India-Central Asia Rare Earths Forum be established in order to pursue collaborations in the field of strategic minerals. This measure will promote the involvement of private Indian enterprises in Central Asia with regards to collaborative economic development and investment. A collaboration of this nature ought to be transparent, mutually beneficial, and formulated to fulfill long-term objectives.

Doval stated, seemingly in retaliation against China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), that maintaining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations and ensuring that connectivity initiatives are “consultative, transparent, and participatory” are of utmost importance. He further stated that these initiatives ought to comply with environmental standards, guarantee financial sustainability, and avoid incurring debt obligations.

The lack of direct land access between India and Central Asia, according to Doval, is “an anomaly” and the “product of a deliberate policy of denial by a specific nation.” While refraining from specifying a nation, it was evident that he was alluding to Pakistan, a country whose borders have consistently denied the passage of Indian merchandise. “This situation is not only detrimental to the collective well-being of the entire region but also self-defeating for this nation,” Doval stated.

Aside from the fact that India is a participant in the Ashgabat Agreement and the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), Doval extended an invitation to the Central Asian nations to conduct maritime commerce through Iran’s Chabahar port, where the Shaheed Bahesti terminal is operated by an Indian company. Furthermore, he solicited their endorsement to incorporate the Chabahar port into the INSTC framework.

The imminent accession of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to the INSTC will bring the total number of Central Asian nations participating in this trade corridor to five.

Additionally, Doval mentioned the Afghanistan situation, stating that it continues to be a matter of concern for all nations in the region. He stated, “Protecting the rights of women, children, and minorities, ensuring the formation of a truly inclusive and representative government, and combating terrorism and drug trafficking are our immediate shared objectives.”

He stated that India is actively engaged in the provision of humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people. As part of India’s initiative to promote sports in Afghanistan, the Afghan cricket team is currently present in the nation to compete in the ICC World Cup. The principal sponsor of the Afghan team for these matches is the Indian company Amul.

Political, commercial, economic, defense, and security relations between India and Central Asia have evolved into multifaceted, mutually beneficial ties founded on trust, understanding, and affinity, according to Doval. Extensive cultural and interpersonal ties are the most robust link between the two parties; India is planning to host a seminar featuring eminent scholars and clerics. He stated that this would promote a more profound comprehension of the historical background and contextual framework of Islam, as well as its contribution to the advancement of harmonious social coexistence and peace in an intricate global landscape.

The Central Asian states’ highest-ranking security officials expressed their approval of India’s proposals to enhance relations in various domains. They underscored the significance of consistent communication among the Security Councils of the nations in light of prevalent challenges in the region, including terrorism, extremism, and radicalization.

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New Delhi hosted the inaugural gathering of senior security officials from India and Central Asia in December 2022, subsequent to the resolution achieved at the inaugural India-Central Asia Summit in January 2022. Senior officials from India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan were in attendance at the meeting on Tuesday. The embassy of Turkmenistan was present in Astana to represent the country.

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“Avoid all travel to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir as the security situation is unpredictable. Terrorism, militancy, civil unrest, and hijacking pose a threat. This advisory excludes travel to or within the Union Territory of Ladakh,” Canada stated in its advisory for India, which was labeled “Exert Extreme Caution.”

Even as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday demanded that India treat with “utmost seriousness” Canada’s allegations of New Delhi’s possible involvement in the murder of Nijjar, a concern echoed by Washington, the most recent development has occurred.

#WATCH | Ottawa: Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau says, "The government of India needs to take this matter with the utmost seriousness. We are doing that, we are not looking to provoke or escalate, we are simply laying out the facts as we understand them and we want to… pic.twitter.com/NyJbdxVJm6

— ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2023

In response to Canada’s assertion, an Indian intelligence official was expelled from Canada and a senior Canadian diplomat was expelled from New Delhi.

“India must treat this matter with the utmost gravity. We are not seeking to provoke or escalate by doing so,” Trudeau told reporters.

Canada stated on Monday that there were “credible allegations” that New Delhi-affiliated agents murdered Canadian citizen Nijjar in front of a Sikh cultural center in a Vancouver suburb on June 18.

The government of Narendra Modi termed Canada’s allegations “absurd.”

On Tuesday, Trudeau stated that his statement was not intended to “escalate” tensions with New Delhi.

“We seek neither to provoke nor escalate. According to CBC, he stated on Tuesday morning in Ottawa, “We are simply presenting the facts as we understand them.”

“The Indian government must treat this matter with the utmost gravity. Trudeau stated this a day after his speech in the House of Commons, which was followed by the expulsion of an Indian diplomat by Ottawa.

India summoned Canadian ambassador Cameron MacKay to the ministry of external affairs to inform him of New Delhi’s decision to expel a senior Canadian diplomat, the chief of Canadian intelligence in India.

The decision reflects the Indian government’s “growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats in our internal affairs and their participation in anti-India activities,” according to a statement issued by the external affairs ministry.

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“Any involvement of a foreign government in the murder of a Canadian on Canadian soil is an intolerable breach of our sovereignty. It violates the fundamental principles that govern the conduct of free, open, and democratic societies, said Trudeau on Monday.

It was widely believed that the accusation would further deteriorate bilateral relations, which were already at an all-time low due to the activities of pro-Khalistan elements in Canada, such as holding a so-called referendum on a separate homeland for Sikhs, targeting Indian diplomatic premises, and inciting violence against top Indian officials.

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The explosions destroyed the counter-terrorism station in Kabal, Swat Valley, in the northwestern region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bordering Afghanistan.

The incident occurred amid a string of deadly militant attacks on Pakistani police, many of which were linked to the Taliban’s domestic branch, and initially prompted fears of a new attack.

However, according to the chief of Swat police, a short circuit in a basement storing “grenades and other explosives” caused the explosions.

Shafi Ullah Gandapur told reporters that there is no evidence pointing to an external attack or suicide bombers as the cause.

Khalid Sohail, a senior officer in the local department of counter-terrorism, stated that the seismic waves caused “the total collapse of the building.”

“A series of two to three bomb explosions occurred,” Akhtar Hayat Gandapur, inspector general of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police, told AFP, adding that the “majority of the victims” were police officers.

Footage from the scene depicted a body being extricated from the debris while a number of small fires burned in the darkness.

The spokesperson for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s rescue service, Bilal Faizi, stated that 12 persons were killed and 50 were injured.

AFP was informed by Akhtar Hayat Gandapur of the same number of fatalities and injuries.

Police on guard

Two attacks on significant police bases have been attributed to the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), since the beginning of the year.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif initially described Monday’s explosions as a “suicide attack” on Twitter.

ALSO READ : Nitish, Mamata, Akhilesh urge Opposition unity before 2024 elections.

He tweeted, “Our police have been the first line of defense against terrorism.”

In a late-night tweet, he stated, “The nature of the explosion is being investigated.”

In January, a suicide bomber detonated his vest in a mosque inside a police compound in the city of Peshawar, northwest Pakistan, murdering more than eighty police officers as the building collapsed and debris fell on worshippers.

Five people were slain the following month when a TTP suicide squad stormed a police compound in the southern port city of Karachi, resulting in an hours-long shootout.

The TTP has long targeted law enforcement personnel, whom they accuse of carrying out extrajudicial killings.

Since the Taliban acquired control of Kabul, Pakistan has experienced a dramatic increase in attacks, particularly in its border regions with Afghanistan, and Islamabad claims that offensives are being launched from Afghan territory.

The TTP was established in 2007 when Pakistani militants fighting alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan split off in retaliation for Islamabad’s support of the US invasion following 9/11.

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Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban killed eight Islamic State militants and arrested nine others in Kabul raids, a spokesman said Thursday.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Wednesday’s raids targeted IS militants who attacked Kabul’s Longan Hotel, Pakistan’s embassy, and the military airport.

Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban killed 8 Islamic State militants and arrested 9 others in a series of raids targeting key figures in connection with recent attacks in Kabul, a Taliban government spokesman said on Thursday, Jan 5.https://t.co/lOxFIzf3G4

— kumarabhishek (@kuma_bhi) January 5, 2023

Eight IS fighters, including foreigners, were killed and seven others arrested in Kabul, and two more were arrested in western Nimroz province, Mujahid said.

Mujahid tweeted that these members played a key role in the Chinese hotel attack and helped foreign IS members enter Afghanistan.

Sunday’s bombing at Kabul’s military airport was blamed on Islamic State. IS said the same militant attacked the Longan Hotel in December.

Islamic State in Khorasan Province, a Taliban rival, has increased attacks in Afghanistan since 2021. Taliban patrols and Shiites have been targeted.

IS identified the attacker as Abdul Jabbar and said he withdrew safely after running out of ammunition.He detonated his explosives-laden vest at the checkpoint, it said. Mujahid said light weapons, hand grenades, mines, vests, and explosives were seized during raids on an IS hideout in Shahdai Salehin. Residents reported explosions and an hour-long gun battle.

In August 2021, as US and NATO forces were leaving Afghanistan after 20 years of war, the Taliban seized power

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Listen to the article: 

Monday, the Taliban made fun of Pakistan and warned of a proper response after the country’s interior minister, Rana Sanaullah, hinted at a possible military operation against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) hideouts in Afghanistan.

Ahmad Yasir, a leader of the Taliban and deputy prime minister, posted a picture of Islamabad giving up to India after the war in 1971 that led to the creation of Bangladesh. In the caption, he warned that the same “shameful” thing would happen to Pakistan if it attacked the TTP with the military.
“Pakistan’s Minister of the Interior! Excellent Sir! Afghanistan, Syria, and Pakistan are not Turkey, so the Kurds in Syria shouldn’t be a target for them. Afghanistan is the place where many great empires have died. Do not think about attacking us with military force. If you do, it will be like the military agreement with India, which was a shame “Mr. Yasir used Urdu to write.

In 1971, General Officer Commanding-in-chief (GOC-in-C) of Indian and Bangladesh Forces in Eastern Theater Lieutenant General Jagjit Singh Aurora took a picture of Pakistan Army commander in East Pakistan, which is now Bangladesh, Lieutenant General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, singing the “Instrument of Surrender” in Dhaka.

د پاکستان داخله وزیر ته !
عالي جنابه! افغانستان سوريه او پاکستان ترکیه نده چې کردان په سوریه کې په نښه کړي.
دا افغانستان دى د مغرورو امپراتوريو هديره.
په مونږ دنظامي يرغل سوچ مه کړه کنه دهند سره دکړې نظامي معاهدې د شرم تکرار به وي داخاوره مالک لري هغه چې ستا بادار يې په ګونډو کړ. pic.twitter.com/FFu8DyBgio

— Ahmad Yasir (@AhmadYasir711) January 2, 2023

On December 16, 1971, a click was made on the picture. In India, the day is known as Vijay Diwas. It’s a day to remember when India helped free Bangladesh.

Mr. Yasir’s warning comes just days after Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said that Islamabad has the legal right to act against “insurgents’ hideouts” in Afghanistan if these groups threaten Pakistan.

In response, the Taliban said that no one would be allowed to attack Afghanistan. RFERL says that its spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said that Afghanistan wants to have good relations with Pakistan, but that its officials should be careful about what they say. Separately, the Taliban’s Defense Ministry in Kabul said that “such claims by Pakistani officials harm relations” and that any problems can be “solved through understanding.”

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India reprimanded the statement of Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto expressing strong protest. Union Minister Anurag Thakur said that Bhutto may have forgotten 1971. At the same time, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha President Tejashwi Surya said – Bilawal is called Pappu of Pakistan. Most of the countries do not want to have any kind of relation with Pakistan.

Bilawal Bhutto said on Thursday that Osama bin Laden is dead, but the butcher of Gujarat is still alive and he is the Prime Minister of India.

India’s Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi said that Bilawal is the representative of a failed country and he himself has failed. What more can you expect from people with terrorist mindset. Foreign Ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said that perhaps Bhutto has forgotten 1971.

BJP workers are angry with the statement of Pakistani Foreign Minister. Angry activists protested in front of the Pakistan High Commission along with Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva. To stop them, the Delhi Police put up barricades. However, the unruly mob also broke the barricades. After this Delhi Police took several BJP workers into custody.

Tejashwi Surya called Bilawal the Pappu of Pakistan

Tejashwi Surya, president of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, who was involved in the protest, said – Bilawal is called Pappu of Pakistan. Most of the countries do not want to have any kind of relation with Pakistan. Today the world is uniting against terrorism under the leadership of Modi. Bilawal’s mother Benazir Bhutto was also murdered by the terrorists. Even after this, he is standing with the terrorists.

Make in Pakistan terrorism’ must be banned

On Thursday, India’s Foreign Minister S Jaishankar had described Pakistan as the epicenter of terrorism. After which Bilawal gave this controversial statement regarding PM Modi. India retaliated by saying that Pakistan does not have the credibility to point fingers at India. Now ‘Make in Pakistan terrorism’ has to be stopped.

The Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement saying that New York, Mumbai, Pulwama, Pathankot and the city of London bore the brunt of Pakistan-sponsored and sponsored terrorism. Terrorism originated from the Special Terrorist Zones of Pakistan and spread across the world. In Pakistan, Osama bin Laden is respected as a martyr. Terrorists like Hafiz Saeed, Lakhvi, Masood Azhar, Sajid Mir and Dawood Ibrahim are given shelter. There are 126 terrorists and 27 terrorist organizations declared by the UN in Pakistan.

Bilawal has forgotten 1971: Ministry of External Affairs

The Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that the Foreign Minister of Pakistan has forgotten the day of 16 December 1971 when more than 90 thousand soldiers of Pakistan surrendered before the Indian Army. This was the result of the genocide of Bengalis and Hindus by the Pakistani rulers. Pakistan’s treatment of minorities still hasn’t changed much. Pakistan is no longer able to use terrorists. Bilawal Bhutto’s uncivilized statement is the result of this.

Pakistani foreign minister makes a personal attack on PM Modi to counter India’s terror charge against Pakistan, repeats false and baseless allegationshttps://t.co/9OJth43rCI

— OpIndia.com (@OpIndia_com) December 16, 2022

Bilawal Bhutto should give a statement regarding the masterminds of terror present in his country. Who have made terrorism a part of the country’s policy. Pakistan has to change its attitude.

Pakistan has encouraged and protected terrorism: Anurag Thakur

Anurag Thakur said that Pakistan’s land has been used to protect and increase terrorism. His devious plans have now been exposed to the world. At the same time, Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi said that Bilawal’s statement shows that he is representing a bankrupt country and himself is mentally bankrupt.

After Pakistan’s comment on Kashmir in the United Nations, India’s Foreign Minister S Jaishankar has responded on the same platform. S Jaishankar said that the country which hosted Osama bin Laden, which attacked its neighbor’s parliament…is not capable of preaching at a powerful platform like UN.

Pakistan again raised Kashmir issue in UN, India said – PAK is spreading lies to gain sympathy

India reprimanded Pakistan for repeatedly raising the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in the United Nations. India termed this move of Pakistan as an attempt to spread lies. Prateek Mathur, Counselor of India’s Permanent Mission to the UN, said that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India.

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