At SCO meet, PM asks members to encourage ‘moderate Islam’ in Af
Drawing attention to the developments in Afghanistan and the Taliban take-over there, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday gave a call to fight “extremism and increasing radicalisation” at the summit meeting of the nine-member forum of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). He emphasised on the history of “moderate Islam” in the Central Asia and also talked about” territorial integrity” in a veiled message to China.
Addressing the summit, the Prime Minister said, “The land-locked Central Asian countries can benefit immensely by connecting with India and its “vast market” and indirectly took on China when he said “connectivity cannot be one way street” and affirmed that projects need to be “transparent”, giving respect to “territorial integrity”.
Modi was alluding to the “China-Pakistan Economic Corridor” or CPEC which India does not recognise as it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Modi said India is helping to increase connectivity in Afghanistan via Iran’s Chabahar Port. The Prime Minister also welcomed Iran as the ninth member of the forum.
Though the Prime Minister spoke through videoconferencing, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is physically representing India on at the SCO summit in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and discussed bilateral relations, particularly the situation at the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh.
In his address, the Prime Minister highlighted India’s concerns over regional stability and asked the SCO member States, which includes China, Russia, Pakistan and Central Asian countries, to ensure the grouping works closely together on issues like connectivity and trust.
Modi referred to “radicalization” many a times saying the biggest challenges before SCO are “peace, security and trust deficit” and sought the 21-year-old forum to take initiative and “fight radicalism and extremism and develop a common template for it”.
The SCO was formed in June 2001 with Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as members. India and Pakistan became full members in June 2017.
The Prime Minister said the Central Asia has been a region of moderation where “Sufism flourished”, and asked SCO should take steps and work to develop a strong network of existing “moderate institutions” there. He called for encouraging “moderate Islam”.
“Today, we can see what is happening in Afghanistan. As SCO members it is a must for us all to ensure that there is no radicalisation and extremism on the rise there.
“If we take a look at history, we will find that Central Asia has been a bastion of moderate and progressive cultures and values. Sufism flourished here over the centuries and spread throughout the region and the world. We can still see them in the cultural heritage of this region,” the Prime Minister said.
“Based on this historical heritage of Central Asia, SCO should make a common template of fighting radicalisation and extremism. In India, and in almost all the countries of the SCO, there are moderate, tolerant and inclusive institutions and traditions associated with Islam,” he further said.
India is quite anxious about Pakistan using Afghan soil to help infiltrate terror groups Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed in Jammu and Kashmir and create another front for India to battle-out along with China and Pakistan.
The Prime Minister clearly maintained that “fighting radicalization is not only necessary for regional security and mutual trust, but it is also necessary for the bright future of our younger generations.”
“The vast economic potential of this region has also remained untapped due to radicalization and insecurity, be it mineral wealth or intra-SCO trade, to take full advantage of them, we have to emphasize on mutual connectivity. The role of Central Asia in history has been that of a connectivity bridge between major regional markets.
“This was also the basis of the prosperity of this region. India is committed to increasing its connectivity with Central Asia”, announced the Prime Minister.