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QUESTION NO.341 BIMSTEC SUMMIT IN KATHMANDU

December 13, 2018

RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.341
TO BE ANSWERED ON 13.12.2018


BIMSTEC SUMMIT IN KATHMANDU

341. SHRIMATI SHANTA CHHETRI:
SHRI SANJAY RAUT:

Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) whether India's efforts to promote regional cooperation continued to focus on the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) in the recently concluded summit in Kathmandu;

(b) if so, the details thereof;

(c) whether other countries at the summit supported India's efforts to corner Pakistan on terrorism; and

(d) if so, the details thereof and the follow-up action taken thereon?

ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
[GEN. (DR) V. K. SINGH (RETD)]


(a) & (b) Yes. India continues to engage with BIMSTEC as an important regional organization. Prime Minister led the Indian delegation for the 4th BIMSTEC Summit held in Kathmandu on 30 - 31 August 2018, which gave a significant push to regional cooperation, and to the strengthening of institutional mechanisms of BIMSTEC including through mandating the drafting of the BIMSTEC Charter. An MoU on BIMSEC Grid Interconnection was signed at the Summit.

India actively participated in shaping the outcome of the Summit. Prime Minister announced a number of initiatives to be undertaken by India to advance BIMSTEC cooperation and capacity in diverse areas such as security, disaster management, economy and trade, agriculture, health and digital connectivity as well as activities to promote cultural and youth linkages.

(c) & (d) Cooperation in the area of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) has been a high priority for BIMSTEC. There is commonality among Member States on the issue of terrorism, as reflected in the Kathmandu Declaration adopted at the Summit, wherein Member States reiterated their strong commitment to combat terrorism and called upon all countries to devise a comprehensive approach in this regard which should include preventing financing of terrorists and terrorist actions from territories under their control, blocking recruitment and cross-border movement of terrorists and dismantling terrorist safe havens. To further deepen regional cooperation in the areas of security and counter-terrorism, in addition to the annual meeting of the BIMSTEC National Security Chiefs and regular meetings of Joint Working Group on CTTC, the Summit also institutionalised mechanism at the level of BIMSTEC Home Ministers.

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