Top global intelligence czars to converge in India this weekend to hold crucial deliberations

PTI, NEW DELHI, MARCH 11 : The US Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, Canadian spy chief Daniel Rogers, and Britain's MI6 boss Richard Moore will be among the top global intelligence czars converging in India this weekend to attend a security conclave, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval is set to chair the India-hosted conclave on March 16, which is expected to deliberate on ways to enhance intelligence-sharing to combat terrorism and various transnational crimes. Intelligence chiefs of Australia, Germany, New Zealand, and several other friendly countries of India are also expected to join the deliberations to be held in New Delhi.

Gabbard is visiting India as PM Modi meets Mauritius President Gokhool, discusses ways to boost bilateral ties.

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Part of a Multi-Nation Tour of Japan, Thailand, and France

It will be the first high-level visit to India by a top official of the Donald Trump administration. Besides attending the intelligence chiefs' conclave, Gabbard is likely to address the Raisina Dialogue and hold a one-on-one meeting with NSA Doval. It is learnt that the US Director of National Intelligence (DNI) will arrive in India on March 15 after concluding her trip to Thailand. Last month, Gabbard met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Washington DC. The conclave of the security and intelligence chiefs is expected to bring together heads and deputy heads of the intelligence and security organisations of around 20 nations. In their deliberations, the intelligence chiefs are also expected to focus on various global challenges, including the implications of the Russia-Ukraine war and the conflict in the Middle East. The security and intelligence chiefs are also likely to discuss ways to deal with terror financing as well as crimes in the digital space, the people cited above said.

The visit to India by Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) chief Rogers is taking place amid frosty ties between the two countries over the Hardeep Singh Nijjar case. The ties between India and Canada came under severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in September 2023 of the "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Nijjar on Canadian soil. New Delhi rejected Trudeau's charges as "absurd." The relations nosedived further in the second half of last year after Ottawa linked several Indian diplomats, including High Commissioner Sanjay Verma, to the murder of Nijjar. In October last, Canada expelled Verma and five other diplomats. In retaliation, New Delhi also expelled Canadian Charge d'Affaires Stewart Wheeler and five other diplomats. It is expected that the case may figure during Doval's conversation with Rogers.

On the sidelines of the conclave, NSA Doval is expected to hold one-on-one meetings with his counterparts from several leading countries. In meetings with her Indian interlocutors, Gabbard is also expected to bring up the need for expanding cooperation between the two countries in the Indo-Pacific.