New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah , on Friday, said financing of terrorism is more dangerous than terrorism, which cannot and should not be linked to any religion, nationality or group.He was chairing the first session of the third ‘No Money for Terror’ Ministerial Conference on ‘Global Trends in Terrorist Financing and Terrorism’ in New Delhi.
To achieve the goal of “No Money for Terror”, the global community must understand the “Mode – Medium – Method” of terror financing and adopt the principle of ‘One Mind, One Approach’ in cracking down on it, he said .
“Terrorism is, undoubtedly, the most serious threat to global peace and security. But I believe that the financing of terrorism is more dangerous than terrorism itself because the ‘means and methods’ of terrorism are nurtured from such funding,’’ Union Home minister said.
He also said that terrorists are constantly finding new ways to carry out violence, radicalise youth and raise financial resources and the darknet is being used by terrorists to spread radical content and conceal their identities.
He said, “We also recognise that the threat of terrorism cannot and should not be linked to any religion, nationality, or group”.
“Furthermore, the financing of terrorism weakens the economy of countries of the world,” he said.Shah said that India condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and we believe that no reason can justify an act, such as taking innocent lives.
While expressing his sympathy for the victims of terrorist attacks all over the world, the Home Minister said that we should never compromise with this evil.
Shah said that the international community has a collective approach that terrorism must be condemned in all its forms, but, the forms and manifestations of terrorism are continuously evolving due to technological revolution.
The Home Minister also said terrorists and terrorist groups understand the nuances of modern weapons and information technology, and the dynamics of the cyber and financial space very well, and use them..
Shah said that the emerging trends of the illegal trade of narcotics, and the challenge of narco-terror, have given a new dimension to terror financing. He said that in view of this, there is a need for close cooperation among all nations. Shah said that multilateral institutions such as the United Nations and the presence of platforms such as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) are most effective in terms of preventing terrorism in the field of “Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT)”. He said that FATF is playing an important role in setting and implementing global standards to prevent and combat, money laundering and terrorist financing.
Union Home Minister said ‘We have a new challenge in the form of Virtual Assets before us as new methods of virtual assets are being used by terrorists for financial transactions’’. He said that to crack down on the use of virtual asset channels, funding infrastructure and Dark Net, we need to work coherently towards developing a “robust and efficient operational system”. Shah said that the United Nations, IMF, Interpol and other stakeholders such as Law enforcement agencies, financial investigators, and regulators of various countries can have a more positive impact in this regard. He said ‘we must understand these challenges in-depth and make efforts globally to curb the new techniques of terror financing, as was done in the recently concluded Interpol General Assembly in New Delhi.’’
Referring to the regime change in Afghanistan, the home minister said after August 2021, the situation in the South Asian region has changed and the growing influence of Al-Qaeda and ISIS has emerged as a significant challenge to regional security.
“These new equations have made the problem of terror financing more serious. Three decades ago, the whole world had to bear the serious consequences of one such regime change, the result of which we all have seen in the horrific attack of 9/11,” he said.
Amit Shah said that India remains committed to all efforts to combat terrorism, by sharing intelligence, capacity building for effective border control, preventing misuse of modern technologies, monitoring and preventing illicit financial flows, and cooperating in investigative and judicial processes.
Union Home Minister said that ‘’we have started this conference today with the address of the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and in these two days there will be a meaningful discussion on various dimensions of Terror Financing and meaningful solutions will be ideated for the present and future challenges. Shah said that as the Home Minister of India, he assures the Conference that our commitment towards the objective of ‘No Money for Terror’ is as strong as your enthusiasm to participate in this event! Shah said that it will be great to hearing from fellow panelist speakers and tomorrow, in the concluding session, Amit Shah would like to put forth his views on some pertinent issues.
Shah said in this background, last year’s changes in the South Asian region are a matter of concern for everyone. Along with Al-Qaeda, organisations in South Asia such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to spread terror, he said.
“We also recognise that the threat of terrorism cannot and should not be linked to any religion, nationality, or group,” the home minister said, adding India has fortified the security architecture as well as the legal and financial systems to fight the menace.
“It is the result of our continuous efforts that terrorist incidents in India have come down drastically. This has also resulted in a drastic reduction in the economic losses caused by terrorism,” he said.Union Home Minister said that the problem of financing of terrorism has become widespread. He said that in the last few years, India has succeeded in cracking down on terror financing
India has been a victim of terrorism which is sponsored from across the border for several decades, the home minister said, adding, “Indian security forces and civilians have had to deal with incidents of extremely serious terrorist violence perpetrated in a sustained and coordinated manner.”
“The international community has a collective approach that terrorism must be condemned in all its forms. But the forms and manifestations of terrorism are continuously evolving due to technological revolution,” he said.
The home minister said the emerging trends of the illegal trade of narcotics, and the challenge of narco-terror, have given a new dimension to terror financing.
India’s strategy against the financing of terrorism is based on these six pillars:
1. Strengthening the Legislative and Technological Framework
2. Creation of a Comprehensive Monitoring Framework
3. Actionable intelligence sharing mechanism and strengthening of the investigation and police operations
4. Provision for confiscation of property
5. Prevent misuse of legal entities and new technologies, and,
6. Establishing international cooperation and coordination
