Terrorism and external induced instability gravest threat to Afghanistan: Modi

"Terrorism and externally induced instability pose the gravest threat to Afghanistan’s peace, stability and prosperity. And, the growing arc of terrorist violence endangers our entire region. As such, support for voices of peace in Afghanistan alone is not enough," said Prime Minister Modi at the Sixth Ministerial Conference of the Heart of Asia Istanbul Process on Afghanistan addressing among others Afghanistan President  Ashraf Ghani..

"It must be backed by resolute action. Not just against forces of terrorism, but also against those who support, shelter, train and finance them."

"Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters. Third, our bilateral and regional commitments of material assistance for Afghanistan’s development and humanitarian needs must continue and increase," said Modi.

Modi said "our words and actions remain focused at advancing a critical unfinished mission of our time."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday also held an 'important' bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Heart of Asia Conference in Amritsar.

He said to help Afghanistan the focus is on building and strengthening its social, political and institutional fabric; secure its territory and citizens from external threats; spur its economic and development activity and stitch a stable and prosperous future for its people.

"Indeed, this is also the intent of this conference, aptly captured in its theme, 'Addressing challenges; Achieving prosperity'," said Modi.

"We have no doubt about the scale of the challenge. But, we are equally determined to succeed," he said.

Modi said "the results of our collective efforts thus far have been hard-won, but mixed."

"There have been important successes. Much more remains to be done," he said.

"The need of the hour is to stand our ground and continue with our line of effort. We must protect and build on the gains of the last fifteen years and march ahead," said Modi.

"Because, at stake is not just the future of Afghanistan that has invested in a vision of development, democracy, and pluralism. But, the peace and stability of this entire region, and beyond," he added. 

He said: "Let us also reflect with urgency on what more must be done and what we must avoid in Afghanistan so that its citizens can self-sustain peace and economic growth. The answers are all there. The question is of resolve and action. And, of putting Afghanistan and its people first."

"For this, First, an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled process is key. It is the only guarantor of durability of solutions. Second, we must demonstrate strong collective will to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear," he said.

"Our cooperative endeavours in Afghanistan should contribute to its infrastructure and institutional capacity, and self-propelling engines of growth," he said, adding that "we should all work to build stronger positive connectivity between Afghanistan and other countries of the region."

"Afghanistan should be at the centre of our connectivity networks, not peripheral to them. On our part, we see Afghanistan as the hub for strengthening links of connectivity between South Asia and Central Asia.

"We cannot deny that the more connected Afghanistan is with the regional arteries of trade, capital and markets, the more assured would be its economic growth and progress. President Ghani and I have converged on the priority of strengthening trade and transport linkages with other partners in the region," said Modi.

Modi said the "Parliament Building in Kabul represents our strong commitment to Afghanistan’s democratic future."

"Zeranj-Deleram highway and India-Afghanistan-Iran cooperation on Chahbahar would enable Afghanistan to link its economy with centres of strong economic growth in South Asia and beyond," he said.

"We also plan to connect Afghanistan with India through an air transport corridor."

"President Ghani and I have discussed additional measures for deepening our bilateral cooperation. We are making progress in developing plans for utilization of the additional 1 billion US Dollar earmarked by India for capacity and capability building in Afghanistan," he said.

"It will extend to areas like water management, health, infrastructure, energy and skill development. As India implements its additional commitments, we are open to work with other like-minded partners for the development of Afghanistan," said Modi.

"We are also happy to note the international commitments at the Brussels Conference in October and NATO’s Warsaw Summit in July this year. We will continue efforts to scale up our ambition and dedication to assist Afghanistan.

"In this, we draw upon lessons learned and best practices derived from our shared experience in working on projects," Modi added.