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Columbus Mabika-Herald Correspondent 

Emerging global security threats require collective effort to deal with them decisively, Defence and War Veterans Affairs Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri said yesterday at the Ministers of Defence Conference in Bengaluru, India, which ends on Friday.

Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri took the opportunity to interact with her Indian counterpart, Rajnath Singh, and several representatives from the aviation and defence industries who expressed interest to do business with Zimbabwe.

Said Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri: “The world is grappling with various forms of security issues. These include both traditional and emerging threats that require collective global efforts as they transcend national borders.”

Some of the most common threats being faced by the world include climate change, terrorism, religious extremism and human and drug trafficking, said Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri.

There was need to ensure that defence and security forces were adequately equipped to respond adequately to the emerging threats.

“Such threats require collective efforts by all of us as some of them transcend national borders,” said Minister Muchinguri-Kashiri.

The conference comes at a time when defence and security cooperation between Africa and India is growing.

In 2020, Africa and Indian ministers responsible for defence and security signed the Lucknow Declaration, in which they pledged to strengthen defence and security cooperation.

Africa and India are cooperating closely in the areas of military training and acquisition of equipment.

India is also increasing its involvement in peace support operations on the continent and was instrumental in the continent’s fight against Covid-19.