India, Malaysia vow to combat terror; ramp up defence ties

Both the countries also agreed to continue sharing of information and best practices

Vowing to combat terror, India and Malaysia today decided to ramp up their strategic ties in security and defence sectors and called on all states to bring perpetrators of terrorism to justice as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with his Malaysian counterpart.

Modi, while speaking at a joint media briefing after his talks with Malaysian Premier Najib Razak, said the recent spate of attacks in different countries, "not to mention the ceaseless terrorist attempts against India and Afghanistan are a reminder of the global nature of this threat."

Modi also complimented Najib for providing leadership in combating extremism and radicalisation, rejecting any link between terrorism and religion and in highlighting the "real values of Islam".

A joint statement released after the talks said both sides expressed "strong condemnation for terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, and called upon all states to reject terrorism and bring perpetrators of terrorism to justice. In this context, they welcomed the ongoing cooperation between the two countries on counter terrorism and agreed to further enhance cooperation in this direction."

Malaysia and India also agreed to continue sharing of information and best practices to address the challenges posed by terrorism and other "traditional and non-traditional threats".

Modi and Najib recalled their stake in promoting multiculturalism and reaffirmed their "commitment to democracy, pluralism and development".

Appreciating Najib's leadership in combating extremism and radicalisation, Modi said this is a great contribution and an important aspect of global efforts against the challenge.

Warning that terrorism is the "biggest threat" to the world, Modi had yesterday said it should be delinked from religion.

Talking about security and defence cooperation, Modi said both countries will make it stronger, including for advancing maritime security and strengthening disaster response in the region.

"I am pleased that we have agreed to upgrade our joint exercises and set up the SU-30 Forum," he said, adding that both sides will do more in terms of level and complexity of exercises and collaboration in training and defence equipment.

"Our agreement to cooperate in cyber security is very important. As our lives get more networked, this is emerging as one of the most serious concerns of our age," Modi said.

India and Malaysia signed two MoUs on Cooperation on Cyber Security and Cooperation in Project Delivery and an agreement on Cultural Exchange Programme for 2015-2020.

The Prime Minister said he shares Najib's belief that bilateral trade and investment relations can be scaled up significantly.