India, Rwanda talk tough on terror

Gandhinagar, Jan 10 (IANS) India and Rwanda on Tuesday said that countries supporting terrorism need to be isolated, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Rwandan President Paul Kagame here.

"Terrorism is the single-biggest global threat to civil societies" and there was a need to isolate countries which support cross-border terrorism, said a joint declaration here.

Kagame is on a two-day visit to India which began on Monday. This is his first official visit to India.

India and Rwanda agreed to "collaborate closely on counter-terrorism cooperation, including blocking financing of terrorist activities, removing safe havens for terrorists and preventing money laundering", the declaration said.

The declaration further appreciated "the role played by both countries in the field of international peace and security by committing regularly to various UN peacekeeping missions".

The Declaration on Strategic Partnership was issued after delegation-level talks between Modi and Kagame.

"Mindful of shared common values and mutual respect for each other" the declaration called for "sharing the common goal of rapid economic development, enhancing global peace, ensuring security and eliminating the menace of cross-border terrorism".

The two nations expressed satisfaction over the broad-based bilateral cooperation spanning over the past two decades.

Both countries recognised that they "are gateways to their respective regions and taking into account India's growing engagement with the African continent" acknowledged its role as an important partner for Africa's development.

The two country resolved to maximise their economic potential to reflect the ongoing transformation of their economies and the global economic order.

Both countries further declared they would double bilateral trade in five years, cooperate to promote investments in mutually-beneficial projects and promote people-to-people exchanges, especially in movement of professionals in areas like information technology, teaching, science, technology, engineering and mathematics.