Impose cost on nations which back terror: PM Modi targets Pakistan, China at NMFT meet

“It is well known that terrorist organisations get money through several sources. One source is state support. Certain countries support terrorism as part of their foreign policy. They offer political, ideological and financial support to them. International organisations must not think that the absence of war means peace. Proxy wars are also dangerous and violent,” said Modi.

“There must be a cost imposed upon countries that support terrorism. Organisations and individuals that try to create sympathy for terrorists must also be isolated. There can be no ifs and buts entertained in such matters. The world needs to unite against all kinds of overt and covert backing of terror,” he said.

Addressing the ‘No Money for Terror’ Ministerial Conference on Counter-Terrorism Financing. https://t.co/M7EhOCYIxS

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 18, 2022

In the backdrop of China blocking several attempts by India and the US to blacklist Pakistan-based terrorists under the sanctions committee of the UN Security Council, Modi said: “Sometimes, there are indirect arguments made in support of terrorism to block action against terrorists. There is no place for an ambiguous approach while dealing with a global threat. It is an attack on humanity, freedom and civilisation. It knows no boundaries. Only a uniform, unified and zero-tolerance approach can defeat terrorism.”

In a veiled reference to the West’s concern over the Islamic State and al Qaeda, with less focus on groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed that specifically target India, the PM said: “There are still certain mistaken notions about terrorism in some circles. The intensity of the reaction to different attacks cannot vary based on where it happens. All terrorist attacks deserve equal outrage and action.”

Modi underlined that India faced the horrors of terror long before the world took serious note of it. “The delegates have a chance to interact with a country and people who have been firm in tackling terror. We consider that even a single attack is one too many. Even a single life lost is one too many. So, we will not rest till terrorism is uprooted,” he said.

“Uprooting terrorism needs a larger, proactive, systemic response, If we want our citizens to be safe, we cannot wait until terror comes to our homes,” he said.

Emphasising the need to strike at the root of terror financing, Modi said fighting a terrorist and fighting against terrorism are two different things. He said all tactical gains will be lost without a larger strategy aimed at hurting the finances of terror groups.

The PM flagged organised crime as one of the sources of terror funding. “Organised crime should not be seen in isolation and these gangs often have deep links with terrorist outfits. The money made in gun-running, drugs and smuggling is pumped into terrorism. These groups help with logistics and communication too. At times, even activities like money laundering and financial crimes have been known to help terror funding. Fighting it needs global collaboration,” he said.

“New kinds of technology are being used for terror financing and recruitment. Challenges from the dark net, private currencies and more are emerging. There is a need for a uniform understanding of new finance technologies. It is also important to involve the private sector in these efforts. From a uniform understanding, a unified system of checks, balances and regulations can emerge. The answer is not to demonise technology. Instead, it is to use technology to track, trace and tackle terrorism,” he said.

Modi said that in such a complex environment, the United Nations Security Council, Financial Action Task Force, Financial Intelligence Units, and the Egmont Group were boosting cooperation in prevention, detection and prosecution of illegal fund flows.

Raising the issue of online radicalisation, Modi said: “Today, cooperation is needed not only in the physical world but also in the virtual world too. The infrastructure used for cyber terrorism and online radicalisation is distributed. Some also offer weapons training from a remote location and online resources. Communications, travel, logistics – there are many links of the chain in different countries. Each country can and must act against the part of the chain within reach.”

“Many different nations have their own legal principles, procedures and processes. However, we must also be careful not to allow extremists to misuse differences between systems. This can be prevented through deeper coordination and understanding between governments. Joint operations, intelligence coordination and extradition help the fight against terror. It is also important that we jointly address the problem of radicalisation and extremism. Anyone who supports radicalisation should have no place in any country,” he said.

The “No Money for Terror” conference started in 2018 as an initiative of the French government to specifically focus on cooperation between countries to choke terror funding. In 2019, the conference was held in Australia. It was to be held in India in 2020 but was postponed due to the pandemic.