Business plan: Six Ukrainians detained in India on suspicion of terrorism

On March 17, it became known about the detention in India of six Ukrainians and one American on suspicion of preparing terrorist activities in the country. It is alleged that foreign citizens are involved in the illegal delivery of large shipments of drones from Europe to Myanmar. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has already stated that the detention is due to the lack of permission to enter the state of Mizoram. Read more about the incident in the Izvestia article.

Detention and investigation

The Indian Express newspaper reported that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) of India has detained seven foreign citizens (six Ukrainians and one American). They are suspected of preparing terrorist activities in the country.

The article notes that a US citizen was detained at Calcutta airport, three Ukrainians were detained at Lucknow Airport, and three more were detained at New Delhi airport. All of them entered India on valid visas.

After arriving in the republic, they went to the state of Mizoram without obtaining a mandatory permit to visit the border areas. Then, foreign citizens crossed the border with Myanmar and established contacts with ethnic armed groups there.

In addition, according to the newspaper, the detainees are involved in the illegal delivery of large shipments of drones from Europe through India to Myanmar. It is added that they were intended for extremists.

After the arrest, all seven were taken to New Delhi. They were charged under Article 18 of the Law on the Prevention of Illegal Activities. On Friday, March 13, a criminal case was registered against the detainees. The court of the Indian capital decided to extend their detention until March 27.

In addition, Indian media reports indicate that the NIA intends to detain "close unknown accomplices" who are still at large and can be discovered after a "technical analysis of social media accounts."

Alexey Kupriyanov, head of the Center for the Indian Ocean Region of the Russian Academy of Sciences, in an interview with Izvestia, draws attention to the fact that at the moment foreign citizens are accused only of having arrived in prohibited areas without proper documents. They have yet to be tried.

Hotspot

The northeast of India, as Alexey Kupriyanov says, is an area with a special entry regime due to its proximity to Myanmar, where there is a civil war and a large number of warring parties, including ethnic groups.

— Some of the ethnic groups that exist there are associated with ethnic movements in northeastern India. Until recently, this area was quite turbulent. And everything more or less stabilized there just a few years ago, when the government involved these ethnic groups in a dialogue," the source explains.

He also adds that in Myanmar, as in any other hotspot, there is a need for the services of foreign mercenaries. Ukrainians, having experience in combat operations, want to make money. Because of this, Myanmar seems to be a pretty good option for them.

— Myanmar and the rebel groups that are fighting each other are willing to pay pretty good money to foreign specialists, including for the supply of weapons. This is very worrying for India due to the fact that recently a large number of people have entered Mizoram as tourists, but at the same time no one sees these people in tourist areas, the expert draws attention.

According to him, due to the fact that this is not the first such case, India will understand the situation.

A note of protest

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry responded to the news about the incident, pointing out that employees of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of India arrived at the court session, but they were not given the opportunity to communicate with the detainees.

It is also reported that the Ambassador of Ukraine to India, Alexander Polishchuk, has already held a meeting with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of India, Sibi George, and presented an official note of protest. Kiev demands that the republic immediately release the citizens of Ukraine, ensure unhindered consular access, and clarify all the circumstances of the incident.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine emphasized that the essence of the charges is precisely unauthorized stay in the territory of the state of Mizoram, which requires special permission, as well as the likely illegal crossing of the state border between India and Myanmar. According to the agency, there is no evidence of the involvement of Ukrainian citizens in illegal activities.

The incident is unlikely to lead to a deterioration of relations between the two countries, Alexey Kupriyanov believes. This is due to the fact that this happens regularly, and such incidents do not affect relations between states. However, India may submit a protest or ask the embassies of the countries to be more careful in this regard.

— They cannot tighten the issuance of visas, because, in fact, such people come on tourist visas, and then violate the rules for issuing and staying in the country. That is, India can protest, but without any serious consequences," the expert concludes.