Delhi, Kabul warn China: Pak maybe your ally but it exports terror : Worl...

1 of 3

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/afghanistan-meet-china-india-pakistan-te...

Bag it Today

In Association with

INDIA WORLD VIDEOS PHOTOS CRICKET MOVIES AUTO SPORTS LIFESTYLE TECH EDUCATION BUSINESS REAL ESTATE
Newsletter

Medical Encyclopedia

| DailyO |

India's Best B-schools 2014

| Books |

From India Today | From Mail Today

| Shopping | Breaking News | Supplements

Fadnavis takes oath as

BJP's rst chief
minister in
Maharashtra

World

Delhi, Kabul warn China: Pak maybe your

ally but it exports terror
Ananth Krishnan Beijing, October 31, 2014 | UPDATED 19:18 IST

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang waves as he walks past Afghan President Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai during the opening
ceremony of the 4th Ministerial Conference of Istanbul Process of Afghanistan held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in
Beijing on Friday. Photo: AP

With rising concerns in Beijing on the spread of terror from Pakistan hitting its
frontier Xinjiang region, China has appeared to rethink its long-held reluctance
to discuss regional concerns particularly in New Delhi and Kabul on
cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan, according to officials present at
Friday's key regional meet on Afghanistan.
Indian and Afghan officials present at the fourth "Istanbul process" foreign
ministerial Afghanistan conference being held in Beijing told India Today that
there was a discernible shift in China's stand on terrorism, in the wake of a string
of attacks in its western Muslim majority frontier region, blamed by the
authorities on the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), some of whose
members are thought to be hiding out near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.

10/31/2014 11:21 PM

Delhi, Kabul warn China: Pak maybe your ally but it exports terror : Worl...

2 of 3

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/afghanistan-meet-china-india-pakistan-te...

Terrorism received prominent attention at Friday's consultations. And unusually

for a meeting being hosted in Beijing, Afghan officials were outspoken about
their concerns on extremist groups operating close to the Pakistan border.
Speaking after the conference, Afghan Foreign Minister Zarar Ahmad Osmani
said to a question from India Today about cross-border terror that "the reasons
for the existence and presence of terrorism in the region has to be identified".
"One of the issues that was under discussion at this conference was the presence
of Taliban in Afghanistan," he said. "The reason for their presence has to be
identified," he added, alluding to Afghan concerns on Pakistani support for
groups in border regions.
Osmani said, speaking through a translator, that the regional effort would not
only need international cooperation, but also an effort to address factors
"outside and inside Afghanistan" that "provide a situation for (militant groups)"
to exist.
Asked by India Today if China was prepared to take steps to address Afghan and
Indian concerns on terrorism emanating from Pakistan, Chinese Foreign
Minister Wang Yi said, "I am happy to tell you that among the confidence
building measures we agreed today, the first is on counterterrorism".
"We believe that the international community should not accept any forms of
terrorism," he said. "During the conference we have had an extensive exchange of
views on the topic."
An Indian official present at Friday's meet said that it was striking that the terror
issue took centre stage. "At one point this was as sensitive for China as [raising]
the South China Sea" considering Beijing's "all-weather" ties with Pakistan, the
official said.
India was represented at Friday's meet by Minister of State for External Affairs
Gen. (retd) VK Singh.
Speaking to the Indian media following his meeting with Foreign Minister Wang,
he said China was "concerned on the spread of terrorism", which was also
concern shared by India.
"We had a convergence of views on this particular issue," he said. "Afghanistan
should not again become a safe haven for terrorism. China said India should
continue to play an important role for security issues in Afghanistan".
Gen. (retd) Singh, who is also Minister of State for Development of the North
Eastern Region, said India and China were working on taking forward the
Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor project, which
could have a bearing on the Northeast's economy.
He said the first priority was to boost infrastructure for the eight northeastern
states, with the new government increasing allocations, such as a 58 per cent rise
in the railway budget. "Our projects were in hibernation in the last 15 years," he
said, "including the road network".
India is also beefing up air connectivity in Arunachal Pradesh. "For Itanagar
airport, the land problem has been sorted out, at Pasigath the runway has been

10/31/2014 11:21 PM

Delhi, Kabul warn China: Pak maybe your ally but it exports terror : Worl...

3 of 3

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/afghanistan-meet-china-india-pakistan-te...

lengthened," he said. For strategically significant Tawang, located near the China
border, he said he was hopeful "one day Tawang will take an aircraft". "The
availability of land is not there, and we have to look at it differently," he said.
"We have to put people to study [the possibility]."

For more news from India Today, follow us on Twitter @indiatoday and on Facebook at
facebook.com/IndiaToday
For news and videos in Hindi, go to AajTak.in. . .

DO YOU LIKE THIS STORY?

10/31/2014 11:21 PM