India was among the 67 countries that participated in a ministerial meeting hosted by the US against far-left extremism and political terrorism. Indian ambassador Vinay Kwatra joined the meeting that saw US secretary of state Marco Rubio calling upon participating countries to unite against left-wing terrorism while claiming that the threat from jihadist terrorism has severely diminished.Kwatra highlighted India’s experience in tackling the challenges from left-wing extremism but also underscored the significance of adopting zero tolerance towards all forms of terrorism, including cross-border terrorism and groups espousing separatist agendas.While 67 countries attended the meeting, many chose to participate at the level of junior diplomats, apparently because of concerns over the extreme framing of the left-wing threat relative to the dangers posed by Islamist and right-wing extremism.Rubio said the era of left-wing violence had to end. He said political leaders, experts and law officials from over 60 countries were attending the meeting despite the differences that their countries had with the US over issues like trade, immigration and energy. This, he said, reflected concerns over far-left political terrorism.“Today’s far-left terrorists can raise money in one country; they can host their communications in a second country; they can receive training in a third country; they can recruit militants in a fourth country; and then together strike a target in a fifth country. And so, we have no choice but to confront this menace together,” said Rubio, adding that countries either cooperate across borders or terrorists will continue to exploit the gaps between them.Kwatra was standing in for external affairs minister S Jaishankar, who was among foreign ministers of around 70 countries invited for the meeting. Jaishankar was travelling when the meeting took place.What might be of concern to India is that Rubio seemed to downplay the threat from radical Islamist extremism while talking up the menace of far-left terrorism. He said the threat from jihadist terrorism had been scaled down because of the successful counterterrorism strategies adopted by the US and Europe. For India, though, jihadist threat remains as potent as it was over a decade ago, as evident from the 2025 Pahalgam terror attack. “The threat (jihadist) has not disappeared, of course. It will continue to exist, particularly so long as we tolerate immigration systems that import these threats directly into our respective homelands. But this threat has been severely diminished,” said Rubio.
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