United Nations, Jun 28 - India today called for rooting out al-Qaeda, Taliban and LeT from Afghanistan charging them of running a "syndicate of terrorism" that gets support from beyond the war-ravaged country's borders.

Terrorism "draws upon the ideological, financial and logistical support from beyond Afghanistan's borders," India's Permanent Representative to the UN Hardeep Singh Puri said at the UN Security Council debate on Afghanistan here.

"We need concerted action to isolate and root out the syndicate of terrorism which includes elements of the al-Qaeda, Taliban, Lashkar-e-Taiba and other terrorist and extremist groups," he said.

He said the international community needs to create an enabling environment where the Afghan people can live in peace and security and decide their future themselves, without outside interference, coercion and intimidation.

"Moving forward, we need sustained international commitment to strengthen the Afghan government's capacity for governance, security and economic development. Enhanced developmental assistance and foreign investments in Afghanistan and building regional linkages are critical in ensuring an irreversible transition in that country," he added.

Puri's remarks came as India readies to host the Delhi Investment Summit on Afghanistan in New Delhi today.

The objective of this Summit is to attract foreign investment into Afghanistan in the light of new opportunities opening up in various sectors in that country.

The Summit will include presentations by the Government of Afghanistan and others on the investment climate and opportunities in Afghanistan and panel discussions on cross-cutting issues as well as sector specific themes.

Potential regional and international investors, including Indian companies, will participate in the event.

"We see the Delhi Investment Summit as a critical link between the Istanbul Process and the Tokyo Conference on July 8. The Summit will also be helpful in countering the current narrative of anxiety of withdrawal and in reversing it with a narrative of opportunity and hope," he added.

Puri said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon's latest report rightly observes that the serious challenges confronting Afghanistan "must not, however, be under-played, with the military drawdown and an unexpected reduction in development assistance giving rise to uncertainty about the sustainability of such gains".

Puri said India fully understands that the economic viability of Afghanistan depends on its fuller integration into its neighbourhood, so that it can regain its historical role as a land-bridge between South Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East and Eurasia.

"We fully support the efforts for regional confidence-building as a critical component of international efforts to support Afghanistan as it takes forward the task of national reconciliation even while it assumes full responsibility for security," he added.

Noting that India shares a privileged, historical and civilisational relationship with Afghanistan, he said the country supports an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned inclusive and transparent process of reconciliation as opposed to an internationally led process, accompanied by an inclusive political process and intra-Afghan dialogue, renunciation of violence, cutting of ties to terrorist groups, abiding by the Afghan constitution with its protections for human rights, including the rights of women.

At the Kabul Ministerial Meeting of the Istanbul process, India expressed its willingness to take the lead in the implementation of two Confidence Building Measures (CBMs), 'Chambers of Commerce CBM' and 'Commercial Opportunities CBM'.

We are doing so while fully cognisant that these CBMs require an atmosphere of security in the country and in the region.

Amidst the ongoing transition, the security gains achieved during the last decade in Afghanistan are still tenuous and fragile.

The security concerns continue to remain paramount.

India has pledged up to two billion dollars in development and humanitarian assistance and Puri said the country remains unwavering in its commitment to assisting the people of Afghanistan in their endeavour to build a peaceful, stable, democratic and prosperous nation. PTI