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Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 28
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said the government had committed $13 billion in credit lines and $4 billion in assistance in the neighbourhood over the last decade. The money translates into nearly Rs 1,20,000 crore and he was referring to India’s immediate neighbourhood, including Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Maldvies.
‘Adhered to principle of non-interference’
With the exception of Pakistan, the SAARC countries have adhered to the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs and not supporting cross-border terrorism
— Rajnath Singh, defence minister
India, he said, was willing to play a leading and critical role at the development front under Neighbourhood First Policy (NFP) by making resources available to neighbours to build necessary infrastructure that would enable connectivity and easy flow of region-wide movement of goods, services, people and ideas.
He was speaking at the inaugural of the 12th South Asian Conference at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis.
“Being the largest country in the region, India has always made efforts to share its prosperity with its neighbourhood,” he added.
Explaining the essential contours of the government’s NFP, he said the mutually beneficial and broad-based approach, comprising both components of development and security, was inclusive and sensitive to the priorities of the neighbouring countries.
Reaffirming India’s firm resolve to tackle cross-border terrorism, Rajnath said, “With the exception of Pakistan, the SAARC countries have adhered to the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs and not supporting cross-border terrorism.”
He called upon SAARC (South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation) nations to be united in defeating the menace of terrorism.
The strikes against terrorist attacks in 2016 and 2019 have demonstrated the nation’s firm resolve to defeat terrorism, he said, adding, “The government’s took stand that talks and terror cannot go together and asked Pakistan to take demonstrable steps against terror groups responsible for launching various attacks on India from its soil.”
Without naming any country, Singh said the full potential of SAARC had not been realised due to the behaviour and policies of a single country and cited how the SAARC motor vehicles agreement was stalled at the last Kathmandu session in 2015.
Making it clear that he was referring to Pakistan, Rajnath said the same country had preferred to use terrorism as a state policy towards India, rather than peaceful settlement of disputes through dialogue.
Terror attacks in Mumbai, Pathankot, Uri and Pulwama were grim reminders of state-sponsored terrorism by a neighbouring country.
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