Global cooperation a necessity for tackling terrorism and radicalisation: NIA chief

Global cooperation is a "necessity" for tackling terrorism and radicalisation and every country should share their experiences in order to keep a step ahead of techniques adopted by terror outfits, National Investigation Agency (NIA) chief Y C Modi said on Wednesday.

He was speaking at the concluding day of a two-day conference -- "Investigating ISIS networks" -- organised by the European Union (EU) and the NIA.

Modi said there were no boundaries for terrorism which makes it imperative for global cooperation to fight the menace.

"There are no boundaries for terrorism. We often find an international connection to terror outfits and their activities, making global cooperation a necessity to tackle terrorism and radicalisation.

"This sharing of experiences is vital for the law enforcement agencies to stay abreast of the tools and techniques employed by these terror outfits across the world, so as to be able to better tackle terrorist threats," he said.

Echoing similar views, Ambassador of France to India Emmanuel Lenain said that international and multilateral coordination is an absolute necessity to the fight against terrorism.

"The EU and India cooperation on security matters is already quite substantial and will assume a new dimension going forward, in various areas such as peacekeeping, maritime security, cyber security and combating cyber crime, and of course counter-terrorism. This workshop demonstrates the added-value of the EU and India in working together towards regional security," Lenain said.

The two-day workshop was part of the EU and India's efforts to further strengthen collaboration between both sides to counter terrorism and radicalisation, following the mandate which was agreed at the 2017 India-EU summit.

The workshop, which was attended by the Indian and European experts, also supports capacity building of the Indian state police services to deal with the growing threat emanating from ISIS networks trying to infiltrate South Asian countries.

With international terrorism being one of the most serious threats to international peace and security, the conference also discussed online radicalisation, which is a significant challenge with fast-growing usage of internet, social media and smart phones globally.

Terrorist groups are increasingly leveraging online platforms to spread false propaganda, identify and enlist potential recruits, provoke and instigate hatred and violence in our societies, it was felt during the conference. India and the EU have been collaborating towards countering violent extremism.

In the backdrop of continued ISIS threat in South Asian countries, the participants at the workshop shared their experiences and best practices to combat this new challenge by law enforcement agencies with a focus on countering online propaganda.

Participants also deliberated on methods adopted by terror outfits for radicalisation and recruitment, especially through online platforms, policing strategies for countering extremism and radicalization, identifying, preventing and countering online extremist materials and their sources, and investigating and countering ISIS terror networks, the NIA said in a statement.

European Union Ambassador to India Ugo Astuto, while inaugurating the conference, said, "This workshop is a clear testimony that counter-terrorism cooperation between the EU and India is robust. Concrete cooperation between the EU and India law enforcement agencies will build capacities on both sides and help jointly tackle terrorism and radicalization, a necessity in today's world.