NEW DELHI: At the BRICS NSAs meeting on Monday in Johannesburg, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval emphasised the link between cybercriminals and terrorists.

He is quoted as saying at the “Friends of BRICS” summit, where the topic of cybersecurity was covered in great depth, “The younger population is particularly vulnerable to the spread of extremist ideologies via social media sites as they are technology savvy and have impressionable minds.”

The invited guests also included representatives from Belarus, Burundi, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kazakhstan, and Cuba in addition to the BRICS members. The purpose of this gathering is to prepare for the BRICS Summit, which will take place from August 22 to August 24. Russia was represented by Nikolai Pastrushev. Wang Yi China took part as well.

Doval stressed the importance of teamwork in overcoming the difficulties brought on by the cybersecurity threat. “It is especially important for the Global South to overcome resource constraints. India will continue to lead the way in this area and collaborate closely with the Global South, according to Doval.

The National Security Advisor also stressed that the introduction of disruptive technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and the Internet of Things will cause cyber dangers to become exponentially more serious.

Doval also discussed the connections between cybercriminals and terrorists during the ‘Friends of BRICS’ meeting, mentioning, among other things, how they exploit the internet for recruitment, financing, money laundering, radicalization, and lone wolf attacks.

It is unclear if India’s national security advisor held bilateral discussions with his BRICS counterparts, Wang Yi being the most expected. Wang Yi, meantime, unexpectedly stopped in Addis Abeba on his way to Johannesburg and reaffirmed Beijing’s willingness to contribute to reducing Ethiopia’s debt strain.

A significant portion of Ethiopia’s estimated USD 13.7 billion debt to China was funded by China Exim Bank between 2000 and 2021. The USD 4.5 billion Addis Abeba-Djibouti railway was funded by the Chinese capital, along with other initiatives like the capital’s Riverside Green Development and a light-rail system.