Putting to rest speculation about sending troops to Afghanistan, India on Tuesday categorically said it will continue to work for the country’s development and provide medical assistance but there will not be any “Indian boots on the ground” there.
This assertion came from Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman amid reports
that the US is keen to have Indian military presence in Afghanistan. She made India’s stand clear after holding wide-ranging parleys with her visiting US counterpart James Mattis here.
She said India has been helping Afghanistan in development activities like constructing dams, schools, hospitals and roads. “We are also at the moment training their officials in good governance... India’s contribution has been there and we shall expand if necessary,” Sitharaman said.
It’s the first visit by a minister of Donald Trump Administration to India. Incidentally, this was also Sitharaman’s maiden interaction with a foreign dignitary since she took charge as Defence Minister on September 3. Mattis later called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval.
Addressing a joint Press conference after the delegation-level meeting, Sitharaman and Mattis said India and the US agree that there can be “no tolerance to terrorism safe havens.” Replying to a question whether she talked about Pakistan’s role in fomenting cross-border terrorism, Sitharaman replied in affirmative and said she urged Mattis to take this issue when he visits Islamabad.
India has already given $3 billion aid to Afghanistan and also provides training to its military and other assistance.
As regards Pakistan, she said India and US appreciated the importance of making accountable those who use terrorism as a state policy and stressed the need for dismantling the terrorist infrastructure.
“The situation in our neighbourhood and the growing menace of cross-border terrorism were discussed in depth. There is growing convergence in the approaches of both our countries on this issue,” Sitharaman said.
The two leaders in their Press statements also agreed to eradicate terrorist safe havens across the globe. There can be no tolerance to terrorist safe havens. “As global leaders, India and US resolve to work together to eradicate this scourge, Mattis said without referring to Pakistan.
Sitharaman said, “The very same forces which did find safe haven in Pakistan were the forces that hit New York as well as Mumbai.”
In the backdrop of growing Chinese military footprint in Indian Ocean and its stance in South China Sea, India and US stressed the need for further expanding their maritime co-operation and reiterated their support for “freedom of navigation, over-flight and unimpeded lawful commerce”.
“We also believe that disputes should be resolved through peaceful means and in accordance with the universally recognised principles of international law,” Sitharaman said in an apparent reference to China’s dispute with countries in the rim of South China Sea.
Stating that the recent Malabar trilateral naval exercises between India, US and Japan demonstrated the progress made in “operational synergies” between the navies, she said “in our talks today, we agreed to explore additional, specialised exercises.”
On the issue of growing defence ties and strategic partnership, Sitharaman said the US is now the leading supplier of state of the art weapon systems to India. She thanked Mattis for willingness to share further hi tech technology and weapon platforms to enhance India’s capabilities to meet current and emerging threats.
“In this context, we agreed that the full implementation of the understanding reached following the announcement by the US last year recognising India as a Major Defence Partner will provide further energy and momentum to our collaboration on defence technology and manufacturing.
We also discussed how to refocus and re-energize the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) as a mechanism to promote technology sharing as well as co development and co-production efforts, she said.