India on Thursday said that the recent developments in Afghanistan with the Taliban taking over the country have enhanced concerns global concerns about their implications for regional and international security.
Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made the comment while addressing the UN Security Council briefing on terrorist threats to international peace and security.
“What is true of Covid is even more true of terrorism: none of us are safe until all of us are safe,” the foreign minister said.
The Union minister also warned that the financial resource mobilisation of terrorist groups like the Islamic State, or ISIS have become more robust. “The flow of funds has continued and rewards for killings I believe are now even being paid in Bitcoins,” he said.
He added that the ISIS’ mode of operation had changed and it was focusing on regaining ground in Syria and Iraq, while its affiliates were functioning independently.
Jaishankar alleged that some countries “undermine or subvert” the fight against terrorism and called upon the UN body not to take a “selective, tactical or complacent view” of terrorism.
“Whether it is in Afghanistan or against India, groups like Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate with both impunity and encouragement,” the foreign minister said. “...We must never countenance sanctuaries for terrorists or overlook the raising of their resources.”
Meanwhile, speaking to reporters after the briefing, Jaishankar assured that India was working with its international partners – mainly the United States – to bring Indians stranded in Afghanistan back to the country, PTI reported.
The Taliban took control of Afghanistan on Sunday, entering the presidential palace in the capital Kabul and ending an insurgent offensive that ripped through the country in 10 days. The group made swift advances and captured key Afghan cities even as foreign troops were preparing to withdraw from the country by the end of August.
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