Sushma rakes up cross-border terrorism

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday said that India and African nations face growing scourge of terrorism and the menace of non-state actors and cross-border terrorism has acquired a new dimension.

Speaking at the ministerial meeting of the Third India-Africa Forum Summit here, she said the scale of challenge of countering non-state actors was huge.

"All our nations find themselves faced with the growing scourge of terrorism. The menace of non-state actors and cross-border terrorism has acquired a new dimension. The scale of this challenge is huge and undermines the peace and stability in our countries, which is essential for our development efforts," she said.

India last week accused Pakistan of using terrorism as an instrument of state policy and said that international community was "deeply concerned about its support to and sponsorship of terrorism".

Some countries in Africa are also countering threats of violence from local and international outfits.

Sushma Swaraj said there was need to step up cooperation through intelligence exchange and called for adoption of convention against terrorism.