India, US seek additional punitive measures against LeT, JeM, their backers

India and the US have sought additional punitive measures like asset freeze and arms embargo by the UN against Pakistan-based terror outfits Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad, their proxy groups and backers.

The two sides also called for additional designations of ISIS and al-Qa'ida affiliates. These terror groups were designated by the UN and they have already been facing various punitive actions under the global body's sanctions regime.

India and the US deliberated on boosting cooperation to combat terrorism at a meeting of their joint working group (JWG) on counter terrorism as well as during deliberations at 'designations dialogue', held on December 3 in New Delhi.

In the talks, the Indian side thanked the US State Department for designating The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of LeT, as both a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).

The TRF had taken responsibility for the Pahalgam terror attack.

The two sides emphasised that confronting terrorism requires concerted action in a sustained and comprehensive manner, according to a joint statement released on Saturday.

Against this backdrop, the two sides renewed their commitment to strengthening multilateral cooperation in the field of countering terrorism, including in the UN, Quad and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

"The two sides called for additional designations of ISIS and al-Qa'ida affiliates, and LeT and JeM and their proxy groups, supporters, sponsors, financiers and backers, under the UN 1267 sanctions regime, ensuring their members face a global asset freeze, travel ban and arms embargo," the statement said.

It said the meetings underscored the importance of bilateral cooperation in countering terrorism, reflecting the "spirit and breadth" of the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.

"Both sides unequivocally condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including cross-border terrorism. They expressed concern over the increasing use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), drones, and AI for terrorist purposes," the statement added.

It said the two sides strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Pahalgam and the recent heinous terror incident near the Red Fort, while stressing that those responsible for terrorism should be held accountable.

"The two sides reviewed a wide range of traditional and emerging threats and challenges such as terrorist recruitment, abuse of technology for terrorist purposes, and financing of terrorism."  "Both sides discussed ways to strengthen cooperation against challenges, including through training, cybersecurity, exchange of best practices and information sharing through continued bilateral and multilateral efforts," the statement noted.

India and the US also discussed strengthening law enforcement and judicial cooperation, including through information sharing and cooperation on mutual legal assistance requests.

Vinod Bahade, Joint Secretary (counter terrorism) in the Ministry of External Affairs, and Monica Jacobsen, Senior Bureau Official in the Bureau of Counterterrorism in the US Department of State, led their respective delegations at the meetings.