India to seek tough regional stand against terrorism

NEW DELHI - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to seek the cooperation of India's neighbors to adopt a tough stand against terrorism at the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit this week in Kathmandu, said official sources here Monday.

Modi will leave for the Nepalese capital Tuesday for the two-day summit from Nov 26 to 27 during which he is also expected to meet with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif on the sidelines of the summit.

It will be his second meeting with all the SAARC leaders except Afghanistan. Modi invited the South Asian leaders for his swearing-in ceremony on May 26.

An Indian external affairs ministry spokesperson said the prime minister will go to Kathmandu "with the intention to have a meaningful dialogue with as many SAARC leaders as possible".

The prime minister "will lay out his vision of what he sees as regional cooperation in South Asia and India's approach to harnessing the development potential of the region as a whole", said the spokesman.

India will focus on enhancement of connectivity and people-to- people contacts during the summit, apart from stressing the need to confront terrorism and violent extremism on a region-wide scale, said Indian officials.

Meanwhile, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will announce the development of a satellite that will serve all the eight nations, in accordance with an order by the prime minister.

For Modi, it will also be his second visit to Nepal since coming to power. He had paid a bilateral visit to Kathmandu in August, the first such by an Indian prime minister in 17 years.

He announced a $1 billion Line of Credit and also addressed the Constituent Assembly in Nepal.

During the forthcoming visit, the prime minister is expected to announce the launch of a Delhi Transport Corporation Delhi- Kathmandu bus service.