Terrorism emanating from the neighbourhood of Russia and India is a major security threat to the two countries and a strong commitment by the international community is needed to combat the menace, President Pranab Mukherjee said on Friday.
Russia has been a pillar of strength at difficult moments in India’s history and Moscow is and will remain New Delhi’s most important defence partner, the President said after an honorary doctorate degree was conferred on him by the Russian Diplomatic Academy here.
“Terrorism and extremism emanating from our shared neighbourhood remains a security threat for India and Russia,” he said and underlined that dealing with this challenge requires not only a strong commitment by the two countries but also cooperation among the international community.
Mukherjee appreciated Russia’s support for India’s permanent membership of the UN Security Council and membership of multilateral export control regimes.
He also praised Russia’s efforts to bring about a political settlement in Syria and its contribution towards a peaceful resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue.