Context-India and 50 African countries adopted the ‘Lucknow Declaration’ at first India – Africa Defence Minister’s Conclave held in Lucknow.

Key highlights:

• All the signatories committed to continuing their collaboration in the fields of peace and security including conflict prevention, resolution, management, and peacebuilding.

• To exchange expertise and trainers, strengthening regional and continental early warning capacities and mechanisms.

• Terrorism is a major threat in the region and thus aims to take resolute action in rooting out terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, eliminating financing channels and halting cross-border movement of terrorists.

• Declaration also urges the international community to envisage the adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

• To encourage enhanced cooperation between India and Africa on the evolving concept of Indo-Pacific.

• It also welcomes the African Unions’ vision for peace and security in Africa that coincides with India’s vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for all in the Region).

• To strengthenth the UN Counter-Terrorism mechanisms and to ensure strict compliance with the the UN Security Council sanctions regime on terrorism.

Origin and Status of Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT)

• India has pushed for an intergovernmental convention to enhance prosecution and extradition of terrorists since 1996.
• Although consensus eludes towards the adoption of the terrorism convention, discussions have yielded three separate protocols that aim to tackle terrorism:
• International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, adopted on 15 December 1997;
• International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, adopted on 9 December 1999;
• International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, adopted on 13 April 2005