India holds 2 anti-terrorism meetings with SCO members, highlights misuse of internet by extremists

At Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meetings, member states also discussed challenges posed by emerging tech like AI, dark web & cryptocurrency.

New Delhi: India’s National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) held two joint meetings with the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (RATS-SCO) over the past week in the capital, focusing on restricting terrorism and extremism through the use of new technologies and the internet.

The RATS is a permanent body under the SCO — a regional intergovernmental organisation often seen as an “eastern counterbalance” to NATO — with headquarters in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. It works on promoting cooperation of member states against terrorism, separatism, and extremism.

The SCO delegations from member states such as China, Russia, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Iran, among others, first met on Tuesday for the fourth edition of the RATS SCO Practical Seminar. This seminar focused on examining and deliberating on issues related to ‘Misuse of the Internet’ by terrorists, separatists and extremists (TS&E).

This was one of the many initiatives established by India in 2019 under the RATS-SCO framework.

On Friday, the NSCS held a joint anti-terrorist exercise with these delegations “to identify and suppress the use of the Internet in terrorist, separatist and extremist purposes.”

Exploring the challenges that emerging technologies, artificial intelligence (AI), dark web, and cryptocurrency pose in countering terrorism, member nations discussed means of combating exploitation of the internet by extremists, especially through social media platforms. They also emphasised the need to improve security and law enforcement capabilities through increased cooperation among member states.

The members also discussed means of collecting digital evidence, restricting the use of digital assets such as cryptocurrency to finance terrorist activities, as well as increasing collaboration and communication between SCO states on critical information infrastructure.

India had held the 22nd summit of the SCO virtually earlier this year. It was New Delhi’s first time chairing the forum since joining the organisation in 2005 as an observer state and later becoming a permanent member.

The Chairmanship of SCO is by rotation for a year between member states. India handed over chairmanship to Kazakhstan in September.

(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)