by Anirban Bhaumik
India and China may discuss this week a mechanism for sharing of intelligence on IS's footprints in South and South East Asia, particularly on the people who are traveling from the region to West Asia traveling terror network.
Beijing is keen to work with New Delhi to keep a tab on Islamic State’s recruitment in the region, notwithstanding differences between the two over Pakistan’s export of terror to India.
India and China may discuss this week a mechanism for sharing of intelligence on IS’s footprints in South and South East Asia, particularly on the people who are travelling from the region to West Asia to join the terror network.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and China’s State Councillor Yang Jiechi will meet in Hyderabad next Friday.
Sources told DH that Doval and Yang might exchange views on the IS’s recruitments from South and South East Asia as well as its bid to spread its tentacles in the region.
What of late made Beijing particularly concerned over the IS’s footprints in the region were reports suggesting that over 100 Uyghur youths from the restive Xinxiang Province of China travelled to Iraq and Syria to fight for the terror organisation.
The Uyghurs have since long been agitating against Beijing’s rule over Xinxiang and struggling for political and religious freedom.
New Delhi too has similar concerns as reports indicated that at least 20 odd youths from Kerala, Maharashtra and other states of India had joined the IS to fight for the ‘jihadi’ organization in West Asia.
The IS also spread its tentacles in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh and other countries in the common neighbourhood of India and China.
India and China discussed the IS footprints in the region when Modi had a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Goa on the sidelines of the BRICS (a Bloc comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit, sources said in New Delhi. It was during their meeting in Goa that Modi and Xi agreed that Doval and his counterpart Yang would meet to discuss on the new irritants that of late came up to add to the strains in the bilateral ties.
New Delhi conveyed to Beijing that it was also keen to step up bilateral counterterrorism cooperation, as fighting the menace was an area on which the two neighbouring nations could not have any difference.
Doval will convey to Yang New Delhi’s concerns over Beijing’s policy of shielding Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar and other terrorists based in Pakistan from United Nations’ sanctions.
Beijing, according to the sources, also has another reason to convey to New Delhi its concerns over Uyghur youths joining the IS.
New Delhi in April issued visa to another Uyghur leader Dolkun Isa to visit India and attend a conclave of pro-democracy activists and delegates of ethnic and religious minorities from China at Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh – the seat of Tibetan Government-in-Exile. Beijing cried foul, saying that Isa, chairman of World Uyghur Congress, was a terrorist and had an Interpol Red Notice against him.
New Delhi finally cancelled the visa issued to Isa, who made Germany his home after fleeing his homeland in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China in 1997.
Sources said that bilateral discussion on the IS’s recruitment from Xinxiang Province of China would also give Beijing an opportunity to underline its claim about the linkages between the Uyghurs’ stir from political and religious freedom with international “jihadi” terrorism.