New Delhi: India and United States of America held the 21st meeting of the India-USA Joint Working Group (JWG) on Counter Terrorism (CT) and the 7th Designations Dialogue on 3 December 2025 in New Delhi. The delegations were led by Dr. Vinod Bahade and Ms. Monica Jacobsen respectively and it highlighted bilateral cooperation’s importance in countering terrorism, thereby reflecting the spirit and breadth of the India-USA Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.
As per the statement, both sides condemned terrorism in all forms and manifestations, including cross border terrorism. Concerns were also expressed over increased use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAVs), drones, and AI for terrorist purposes. Both sides also condemned Pahalgam attack in Jammu and Kashmir on 22 April 2025, and Red Fort Blast in New Delhi on November 10, 2025. Also, both India-US stressed that people responsible for terrorism should be held accountable.
Other emerging threats and challenges including terrorist recruitment, abuse of technology for terrorist purposes, financing terrorism was also reviewed during the discussion. Furthermore, both sides discussed ways to strengthen cooperation against these challenges.
As per the statement, participants from both countries also discussed ways to strengthen law enforcement and judicial cooperation.
The both sides also highlighted that confronting terrorism requires concerted action in a sustained and comprehensive manner. The two sides thereby renewed their commitment to strengthening multilateral cooperation in the field of countering terrorism .
Furthermore, additional designations of ISIS and al-Qa’ida affiliates, and Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and their proxy groups, supporters, sponsors, financiers and backers, under the UN 1267 sanctions regime, ensuring their members face a global asset freeze, travel ban, and arms embargo was called for.
The Indian side also thanked the U.S. Department of State for designating The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of LeT, as both a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
