Senior representatives of nearly 40 international spy agencies visited India to attend first-of-its-kind conclave in Delhi on Sunday. Several spy chiefs will also attend the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) annual event, the Raisina Dialogue, which commences Monday evening, besides other scheduled interactions.

The "informal" gathering of spy chiefs senior representatives belonging to more than three dozen countries in the world is aimed at boosting closer working mechanism, sources revealed. Spy chiefs from Canada, France, Australia, Germany, Singapore, Japan, New Zealand, the UAE, Israel, the UK and several other Asian and European countries were expected to attend the meeting. CIA chief William Burns and Canadian Security Intelligence Services director David Vigneault had to cancel their visit due to different reasons.

Ajit Doval
India's National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.Reuters

China on agenda

At the conclave, the respective agency heads discussed biggest global security issues posing an immediate threat to the world. Additionally, sources had also revealed that the common agenda of discussion would be China and the threat it poses to world security in social, economic and territorial ways.

R&AW
R&AW

The conference was organised by India's R&AW and National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) which reports to NSA Ajit Doval. The attending spy bosses interacted with their Indian counterparts and Doval during the conclave.