External Affairs Minister S Jaishanker. (File)External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Saturday called terrorism as the “gravest threat” to the people in Asia. Addressing the fifth Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) summit in the Tajik capital, Jaishankar said that terrorists and their victims must never be equated.
“Terrorism is the gravest threat we face in Asia. CICA members are its victims and so it should be clear that terrorists and their victims must never be equated,” he tweeted.
The new External Affairs Minister arrived in Dushanbe on Friday for the 5th CICA Summit. He was welcomed by President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, ahead of the summit. With the theme “Shared Vision for a Secure and More Prosperous CICA Region,” Jaishankar discussed collective strategies to deal with challenges facing the Asian continent.
Supporting a peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan that is Afghan-led and Afghan-owned, he said, “All initiatives and processes must include all sections of Afghan society, including the legitimately elected government.”
President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon with EAM S Jaishankar. ( Twitter/EAM)He also spoke about how globalisation is under stress due to new geo-political and geo-economic faultlines and that India supports a rule-based order. Sharing India’s vision for a more secure and prosperous Asia as well as its concerns, Jaishankar said that the 21st century is being hailed as the Asian century and CICA can surely play a useful role in promoting peace, security and development in Asia.
He said, “The India-Central Asia 5 dialogue format is big positive for cooperation and stability across regions.
“India’s vision of the Indo-Pacific is rooted in SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and in sync with CICA’s goals,” Jaishankar added.
During the Summit, the CICA leaders are likely to deliberate on the existing and emerging issues of common concern and underline implementation of confidence-building measures for developing Asia into a prosperous, secure and peaceful region. India is a member of the CICA since its inception and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had participated in the first CICA Summit held in 2002 in Almaty, Kazakhstan. India has been actively participating in various activities conducted under the aegis of CICA.
