Here's what Director of IS National Intelligence Dan Coats told Senate Select Committee on Intelligence about India

The militant groups supported by Pakistan will continue to conduct terrorist attacks in both India, America's spymaster has said. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats also said Pakistan's "narrow approach to counter terrorism cooperation-using some groups as policy tools and confronting only the militant groups that directly threaten Pakistan-almost certainly will frustrate US counter terrorism efforts against the Taliban." 

He also warned the possibility of communal violence in India before the general election, the security threat posed by nuclear programs of India and Pakistan, and Indian ties with China next year.

Coats and heads of other top American intelligence agencies appeared before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on their worldwide threat assessment. Prominent among them included CIA Director Gina Haspel, who has just returned from a trip to India; FBI Director Christopher Wray and Defence Intelligence Agency Director Robert Ashley.

The comment on South Asia is part of the US intelligence community's assessment of worldwide threats in 2019 and was presented in the form of a written document to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence by Coats.

Here are a few more things that US Spy Chief Dan Coats forewarned about at a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on 'Worldwide Threats'.

1. Militants To Get Safe Haven In Pakistan

Dan Coats said that the militant groups supported by Pakistan will continue to conduct terrorist attacks in both India and Afghanistan. 

"Militant groups supported by Pakistan will continue to take advantage of their safe haven in Pakistan to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan, including against US interests," Coats told the members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. 

2. Nuke Programs of India, Pakistan To Increase Security Risk In South Asia

There is an increased risk of a nuclear security incident in South Asia due to continued growth and development of Pakistan and India's nuclear weapons programmes, America's top spymaster told lawmakers on Tuesday. The remarks of National Intelligence Director Daniel Coats is part of US intelligence community's assessment of worldwide threats in the year 2019.

While Pakistan continues to develop new types of nuclear weapons, including short-range tactical weapons, sea-based cruise missiles, air-launched cruise missiles, and longer-range ballistic missiles, India this year has conducted its first deployment of a nuclear-powered submarine armed with nuclear missiles, he said.

"The continued growth and development of Pakistan and India's nuclear weapons programmes increase the risk of a nuclear security incident in South Asia, and the new types of nuclear weapons will introduce new risks for escalation dynamics and security in the region," Coats said in his opening statement running into over 40 pages.

3. India, China Ties To Remain Tense In 2019

Relations between India and China is expected to remain tense this year, despite the efforts of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping to improve ties between the two nations, Coats told lawmakers on Tuesday.

National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said though Modi and Xi held an informal summit in April 2018 to defuse tension and normalise relations between the two nation post the 2017 military standoff at Doklam, they did not address border issues. "Misperception of military movements or construction might result in tensions escalating into armed conflict," he warned. 

"We expect relations between India and China to remain tense, despite efforts on both sides to manage tensions since the border standoff in 2017, elevating the risk of unintentional escalation," Coats told members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence during a Congressional hearing on World Wide Threat assessment of the US intelligence community. 

4. South Asia To Face More Challenges Because of Afghanistan Election

Coats said that the challenges facing South Asian states will grow in 2019 because of Afghanistan's presidential election in mid-July and the Taliban's large-scale attacks, Pakistan's recalcitrance in dealing with militant groups, and Indian elections that risk communal violence. 

"We assess that neither the Afghan Government nor the Taliban will be able to gain a strategic military advantage in the Afghan war in the coming year if coalition support remains at current levels," he said.

Afghan forces generally have secured cities and other government strongholds, but the Taliban has increased large-scale attacks, and Afghan security suffers from a large number of forces being tied down in defensive missions, mobility shortfalls, and a lack of reliable forces to hold recaptured territory, Coats said.

5. Possibility of Communal Violence In India Ahead Of General Election

There is a strong possibility of communal violence in India if the ruling BJP stresses on Hindu nationalist themes ahead of the general election in May, Coats said. The comment on India's upcoming general election is part of the US intelligence community's assessment of worldwide threats in the year 2019 and was presented in the form of a written document to the powerful Senate Select Committee on Intelligence by Dan Coats, Director of National Intelligence.

"Parliamentary elections in India increase the possibility of communal violence if Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stresses Hindu nationalist themes," Coats told members of the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.