The team from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has concluded the questioning of 26/11 plotter David Coleman Headley in the US. Meera Shankar, the Indian ambassador to the US, said from Washington that the visit was “useful”.
In a statement made available by the external affairs ministry here, Ms Shankar said the questioning of Headley took place over several days, beginning from June 3, and the NIA team was now returning to India.
“The Government of India attaches importance to this in investigating the full dimension of this heinous act of terrorist violence. The support and cooperation extended by the US authorities is appreciated and is in keeping with the commitment of the two countries to strengthen their cooperation in meeting the challenge of terrorism,” Ms Shankar noted.
Separately, US ambassador to India Timothy Roemer has said from Washington that “the Headley interviews were historic in the nature of security cooperation. This strategic partnership is significant, substantive, and highly successful.”
In remarks made available by the US embassy here, Mr Roemer said a team of Indian investigators had conducted a series of interviews with Headley. The team arrived in the US on May 31, and their interviews with Headley began on June 3.
“... the US government worked continuously at the highest levels to ensure that this access (to Headley) occurred and was constructive in advancing our already unprecedented cooperation and information sharing on counter-terrorism issues. I am proud to confirm today that these efforts were successful. As President Obama underscored last week during the US-India strategic dialogue, India and the US ‘are cooperating more closely than ever before against transnational threats,’ working to prevent terrorism,” Mr Roemer added.