India and Australia have agreed to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation through measures such as regular exchange of information and sharing of best practices on countering violent extremism, the MEA said.

Officials of the two countries held the 10th Meeting of the Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism in New Delhi yesterday, during which they assessed and exchanged views on prevailing terrorist threats, including cross-border terrorism in Af-Pak region, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

The Indian delegation was led by Mahaveer Singhvi, joint secretary (counter terrorism) in the Ministry of External Affairs, while the Australian delegation was led by Paul Foley, ambassador for counter-terrorism.

"The two sides agreed to further strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation through regular exchange of information, capacity building efforts, mutual legal assistance, sharing of best practices on countering violent extremism and cooperating in multilateral fora such as the Untied Nations and the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering," the MEA said.

They also discussed contemporary counter terrorism challenges such as radicalisation and violent extremism, use of Internet for terror purposes, foreign terrorist fighters explored measures to combat financing of terrorism.

The next meeting of the Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism shall be held in Australia in 2019.

Courtesy: The Pioneer, Wednesday, 20 June 2018 | PTI | New Delhi