India, Malaysia vow deeper counter-terror partnership at 3rd Joint Working Group meeting

The meeting was co-chaired by Vinod Bahade, Joint Secretary (Counter Terrorism), Ministry of External Affairs, and Mohd. Azlan bin Razali, Under Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs of Malaysia.

According to the MEA, both sides condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, stressing the need for stronger and sustained international cooperation to tackle global terror threats. They also reiterated their resolve to work closely in multilateral platforms, including the United Nations, FATF, APG and ARF.

Officials from both countries exchanged assessments on the evolving regional and global terrorism landscape. Discussions covered key challenges such as the use of emerging technologies by terror groups, terror financing networks, and linkages between organised crime and terrorism.

Both sides emphasised the importance of timely information sharing, enhanced law enforcement cooperation, and continued capacity building to counter these threats.

"The two sides exchanged views on the regional and global terrorism landscape. They discussed the challenges in combating terrorism, including the use of new and emerging technologies by terrorists, terror financing and the linkages between transnational organised crime and terrorism. In this regard, they underlined the importance of strengthening cooperation through timely sharing of information, law enforcement training and capacity building, MEA said in its statement.

As part of the engagement, the Malaysian delegation will visit the National Security Guard (NSG) headquarters on December 11 to explore avenues for deeper bilateral cooperation in capacity-building and specialised training.

India and Malaysia agreed to convene the next round of JWG discussions in Kuala Lumpur at a mutually convenient date, building on momentum in security and counterterrorism cooperation. (ANI)