French President Francois Hollande on Monday joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi in asking Pakistan to bring to justice plotters of the terror strikes in India, including the November 2008 carnage in Mumbai as well as the recent attacks at Gurdaspur and Pathankot in Punjab.
As they met in New Delhi on the backdrop of the November 2015 carnage in Paris and January 2016 terror attack at Pathankot in Punjab, Modi and Hollande agreed to expand bilateral cooperation to combat the menace – including joint counterterrorism exercise by National Security Guard (NSG) of India and Groupe d'Intervention de la Gendarmerie Nationale (GIGN) of France.
Hollande, who is currently on a tour to New Delhi, joined Modi to step up pressure on Islamabad, just a day after US President Barack Obama said that Pakistan “could and must” take more effective action against terrorists operating from its territory.
“Condemning the recent terror attacks in Pathankot and Gurdaspur in India, the two countries reiterated their call for Pakistan to bring to justice their perpetrators and the perpetrators of the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai, which also caused the demise of two French citizens, and to ensure that such attacks do not recur in the future,” Hollande and Modi said in a joint statement on counter-terrorism issued after the two leaders met in New Delhi.
Recognising the urgent need to disrupt terrorist networks and financing channels, eliminate terrorist safe havens, training infrastructure and cross-border movement of terrorists, Modi and Hollande underlined the need for all countries to effectively deal with terrorism emanating from their territory under their control.
They also called for actions to be taken, consistent with international law, against all entities, including countries that sponsor, provide support, active or passive, to terrorist groups or harbour them.
Ever since at least 129 people were killed in a series of coordinate attacks by Islamic State terrorists in and around Paris on November 13, 2015; France and India have been exploring ways to augment bilateral cooperation to fight terror.
France too joined US, UK, Russia, China, Japan, Germany, Korea, Italy and several other nations earlier this month to condemn the terrorist attack on the airbase at Pathankot.
Modi and Hollande on Monday resolved to step up bilateral cooperation, under the supervision of annual strategic dialogues and joint working group on counterterrorism meetings, to counter violent extremism and radicalisation, disrupt recruitment, terrorist movements and flow of foreign terrorist fighters, stop sources of terrorist financing, dismantle terrorist infrastructure and prevent supply of arms to terrorists.
The two leaders also welcomed the unanimous adoption by the UN Security Council of resolution 2249 that called upon member states to take all necessary measures against the unprecedented threat posed by Daesh (Islamic State).
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