Rise of Taliban- Rajnath Singh on the Taliban: Defense Minister Rajnath Singh told his Australian counterpart Peter Dutton on Friday that the rise of the Taliban poses serious security concerns for India and the region. The main reason for this is that terrorist groups have a base in Afghanistan, they can get more support to increase their activities.
Government sources said that during the talks, Rajnath Singh also said that the territory of Afghanistan should not be used to threaten or attack another country. He stressed that the international community should do everything possible to ensure the implementation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution 2593 on Afghanistan.
Sources said the Indian delegation expressed concern about the possible implications for the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir following the Taliban seizure of power in Afghanistan, as there is a possibility that terrorist activities could spread from Afghanistan to the territory of the Union.
The talks took place a day before the first two plus two talks between the foreign and defense ministers of India and Australia. Australian Foreign Minister Maris Payne and Dutton arrived here on Friday for “two plus two” talks.
In interviews with Dutton, Singh voiced India’s concerns over human rights abuses and the suppression of the rights of women, children and minority communities under the Taliban (Rise of Taliban), sources said.
Sources said the Afghan crisis had been discussed in detail and there was a similarity of views on both sides. He also said that Singh also spoke forcefully about the need to implement the Security Council resolution adopted on August 30 under India’s presidency.
The resolution demanded that Afghan territory (Rise of Taliban) not be used to threaten or attack a country or to harbor and train terrorists and to plan or finance terrorist attacks.
According to sources, the border dispute in eastern Ladakh between India and China was also briefly mentioned in the talks and the Indian side has indicated that New Delhi is committed to resolving the issue peacefully by the government. dialogue.
In a statement released to the media, Singh called the discussion “meaningful and comprehensive” and said bilateral defense cooperation as well as regional issues were discussed during the deliberations. “We both look forward to working together to realize the full potential of the India-Australia comprehensive strategic partnership,” he said.
Singh said the partnership between the two countries is based on “our shared vision of a free, open, inclusive and rules-based Indo-Pacific region.” “Australia and India have a huge interest in peace, development and the free flow of trade, rules-based order and economic development in the region,” he said. “Our discussions today focus on expanding our bilateral defense cooperation and military partnership, improving defense information sharing, cooperation in emerging defense technologies and mutual support in logistics, ”Singh said.
He also referred to Australia’s participation in the last two editions of Exercise Malabar. Singh said the two sides agreed that there are opportunities for bilateral cooperation for the co-development and co-production of military equipment and called on Australian industry to take advantage of the liberal foreign direct investment policies of the United Kingdom. India in the defense sector. made.
Singh said, “I briefed Minister Dutton on our recent efforts towards a self-reliant India and India’s growing innovation ecosystem. We discussed the possibilities of working together in the areas of defense science and technology. “
He said India is committed to building a strong partnership with Australia for the security and development of the whole region. “I look forward to working with you to take the India-Australia defense partnership to greater heights,” Singh said.
Military and defense cooperation between India and Australia has grown over the years. In June last year, India and Australia extended their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership and took a historic step towards mutual access to military logistics bases at an online summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison. The agreement has been signed.
