India, US sign pact to tackle terror

Obama comes calling: Both nations for finishing terrorist havens

India and the US on Sunday announced signing of a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding to step up cooperation to cut the flow of fund to terrorist organizations.

The US Department of Treasury and the Ministry of Finance of the Indian government signed the MoU to enhance cooperation to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism.

Though the MoU was signed three days ago, it was revealed on Sunday, when a joint statement was issued after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with US President Barack Obama.

Prime Minister and US President on Sunday committed to undertake efforts to make the America-India partnership a defining counterterrorism relationship for the 21st century by deepening collaboration to combat the full spectrum of terrorist threats and keep their respective homelands and citizens safe from attacks.

They also noted the positive cooperative engagement between Indian and US authorities with a view to working together to counter the threat of Improvised Explosive Devices and to develop counterterrorism best practices.

They reiterated their strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations with ‘zero tolerance’ and reaffirmed their deep concern over the continued threat posed by transnational terrorism including by groups like Al Qaida and the ISIL, and called for eliminating terrorist safe havens and infrastructure, disrupting terrorist networks and their financing, and stopping cross-border movement of terrorists.

Modi and Obama on Sunday took note of the growing cooperation between Indian and US law enforcement agencies, particularly in the areas of extradition and mutual legal assistance, to counter transnational criminal threats such as terrorism, narcotics, trafficking, financial and economic fraud, cybercrime, and transnational organized crime and pledged to enhance such cooperation further.

They also noted the “serious risks to national and economic security from malicious cyber activity and agreed to cooperate on enhancing operational sharing of cyber threat information, examining how international law applies in cyberspace, and working together to build agreement on norms of responsible state behavior”.