Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said on Wednesday that India will join the fight against Isis or Islamic State if United Nations adopts a resolution to counter the jihadist extremists in the Middle Eastern countries.
Speaking to the reporters at the India Gate after laying wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti on Vijay Diwas, Parrikar said that India's stand against the Isis under UN flag depends "on whether UN takes a resolution".
He was responding to questions on India's operation against the jihadist group.
"We have made it clear that if there is a UN resolution and if there is UN flag and a UN mission, then as per India's policy to operate under UN flag, we will participate," Parrikar said, according to PTI.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government has for the first time made a formal statement on its stand to fight Isis.
According to reports, India has been hesitant in sending its troops on a peacekeeping mission after losing at least 1,200 soldiers in Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) operations in Sri Lanka in late 1980s. India has so far lost 157 soldiers in other UN missions.
As a result, India has refrained from sending its troops to Iraq after the US-led coalition dethroned Saddam Hussein, according to The Hindu report, which also suggests that the US has once again asked India to join the western countries in their fight against Isis.
Parrikar's statement came after the global meeting held in Paris to chalk out ways to counter the terror organisation widely active in Iraq and Syria.
Several people from different parts of the world have joined the Isis in their jihadist war in the middle eastern nations. The Indian intelligence agencies have suggested that at least 20 Indians are also among the Isis fighters in Iraq and Syria at present.
Two youths from Kalyan, Maharashtra, an Australia-based Kashmiri, one Oman-based Indian, one Singapore-based Indian and one youth each from Telangana and Karnataka are among the India-origin Isis fighters.
Several others, including a youth from Kalyan, were deported in the last few months either for fighting for Isis or on the suspicion of trying to join the Islamist group. Many others were killed while fighting for Isis.
The Indian security agencies have so far prevented 17 young men from India from allegedly joining the jihadist militants in Syria.
The presence of Isis in neighbouring nations like Bangladesh and Pakistan have also been reported in the past and their presence is likely to pose threat to India.
