"BIMSTEC Home Ministers Adopt Delhi Declaration Against Terrorism"
BIMSTEC
regional grouping of seven Bay of Bengal states formed in 1997 for economic and security cooperation
1267 Sanctions Committee
UN Security Council body that lists and sanctions individuals/entities linked to terrorism
The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) was formed in 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration. It was not formed through any 'Dhaka Declaration' as some people mistakenly believe. Its five original founding members were Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Nepal and Bhutan joined later. This brought the total to seven member states today. BIMSTEC's permanent secretariat is in Dhaka, Bangladesh. BIMSTEC is different from the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) in one important way. It bridges South Asia and Southeast Asia around the Bay of Bengal. SAARC is confined to South Asia alone.
The BIMSTEC Charter was adopted at the Fifth Summit. It gave the grouping a formal legal personality. It also gave the grouping a clearer institutional structure. Security cooperation under BIMSTEC is organised into sectoral pillars. Each pillar is led by one member state. India leads the counter-terrorism and transnational crime pillar. This role is consistent with India's wider strategic push through the Act East Policy and Neighbourhood First Policy. This security track has grown step by step. The 2018 Kathmandu Summit decided to hold meetings of Home Ministers. These meetings would happen in addition to existing National Security Chiefs' meetings. The 2025 Bangkok Summit reaffirmed the plan to set up a formal Home Ministers' Meeting (HMM) mechanism. SAARC has remained largely non-functional due to political differences among its members. Because of this, BIMSTEC has increasingly become India's preferred platform for regional security and economic engagement.
BIMSTEC has seven member states as of January 2025. The founding members are Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Nepal and Bhutan joined later. Different BIMSTEC sectors are led by different member states. India leads counter-terrorism and transnational crime. Other sectors have their own lead nations.
India hosted the first-ever BIMSTEC Home Ministers' Meeting in New Delhi. All seven member states adopted the Delhi Declaration at this meeting. The declaration commits members to counter radicalisation, prevent misuse of new and emerging technologies for terrorism, and curb terrorist recruitment. It also calls for tighter action against terror financing. This action must be in line with international anti-money-laundering standards. The declaration also calls for effective implementation of UN Security Council sanctions, including those of the 1267 Sanctions Committee. The 1267 Sanctions Committee is the UN body that lists and sanctions individuals and entities linked to Al-Qaida and ISIL. Member states condemned terrorism and extremism 'in all its forms'. They condemned it regardless of who commits it or for what cause. They called for perpetrators to be brought to justice under domestic and international law.
The meeting identified five priority areas of cooperation. …
Consider the following statements in respect of BIMSTEC:
I.It is a regional organization consisting of seven member States till January 2025.
II.It came into existence with the signing of the Dhaka Declaration, 1999.
III.Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Nepal are founding member States of BIMSTEC.
IV.In BIMSTEC, the subsector of 'tourism' is being led by India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Do you think that BIMSTEC is a parallel organisation like the SAARC? What are the similarities and dissimilarities between the two? How are Indian foreign policy objectives realized by forming this new organisation?
Consider the following statements regarding BIMSTEC:
1.It was established through the Bangkok Declaration of 1997.
2.Its founding members included Nepal and Bhutan.
3.India leads the counter-terrorism and transnational crime sector within BIMSTEC.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Match List I (BIMSTEC institutional step) with List II (associated Summit/event) and select the correct code:
List I:
A.Decision to hold BIMSTEC Home Ministers' Meetings
B.Adoption of the BIMSTEC Charter
C.Proposal to establish a BIMSTEC Disaster Management Centre
D.Adoption of the Delhi Declaration
List II:
1.Fifth BIMSTEC Summit
2.Fourth BIMSTEC Summit (Kathmandu, 2018)
3.Sixth BIMSTEC Summit (Bangkok, 2025)
4.First BIMSTEC Home Ministers' Meeting (2026)
With reference to the first BIMSTEC Home Ministers' Meeting (2026), the 'Delhi Declaration' called for effective implementation of the sanctions measures of which UN Security Council body?
Which of the following were identified as priority areas of cooperation at the first BIMSTEC Home Ministers' Meeting?
1.Drug control
2.Repatriation of fugitive criminals
3.Maritime boundary delimitation
4.Cyber-security and cybercrime investigation
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
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