PM calls for genuine global cooperation to defeat terrorism

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said that it was imperative for all countries to genuinely cooperate with one another and on a global scale to resolutely defeat international terrorism.

"The spectre of terrorism, extremist ideologies and illicit drug trafficking haunts our region. Terrorist crimes committed today are transnational in nature. No country is immune from them," Dr Singh said in his opening remarks to the plenary session of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit at Yekaterinburg in Russia.

Dr Singh, who reached the central Russian city yesterday evening, is also due to attend the first ever Brazil-Russia-India-China (BRIC) Summit here later today before returning home tomorrow.

The SCO was founded in 2001 and brings together China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India, Iran, Pakistan and Mongolia are Observer States in the grouping.

India has been attending the SCO Summits regularly since 2005, but only at the ministerial level. This is the first time that Dr Singh has decided to attend the Summit himself.

The Prime Minister noted that the SCO represented a vast land mass rich in cultural diversity, creativity and resources. He also pointed out that India had excellent bilateral relations with each of the members of the organisation.

"Our relations with them go back in time. They rest on solid civilisational, cultural and economic linkages that have flourished over centuries," he said.

Dr Singh said that, as an Observer State, India had been following the evolution of the SCO with keen interest. "We wish to see peace, prosperity and stability in the region that the Organisation represents. We have many complementarities and have a lot to gain and learn from each other. It is in this spirit that we approach our engagement with the Organisation and its different organs and bodies," he said.

The Prime Minister said the growth of the Indian economy at an average rate of 8 percent over the last five years had enabled his government to generate higher investible resources to cater to the needs of the country's rural economy, the social sector and infrastructure. It had also opened up opportunities to intensify India's interaction with the outside world in the areas of trade and investment, science and technology, and in the revival of the global economy, he said.

"We seek an external environment that is conducive to meeting the aspirations of our people. Against this background, the Russian Presidency’s initiative to focus on the themes of regional security and sustainable development is most appropriate," he said.

Dr Singh said the threats to world security were global in nature, and required a global response.

"The prevalence of poverty and under-development in large parts of the world continues to threaten global stability. We believe that with the resources available with us, the SCO and India can mutually reinforce each other’s efforts towards the economic emancipation of our region. We would be happy to share with our friends in the SCO the experiences we have gained over the years in various sectors of nation-building," he said.

According to him, there is a lot to be gained through strengthening connectivity between the SCO and India. He said India would like to cooperate in finding innovative means to strengthen people-to-people contacts, exchanges of businesspersons and scholars, and trade, investment and technology flows. He said India would also welcome closer cooperation in the fields of energy and food security, and infrastructure development.

Dr Singh said the issue of stability in Afghanistan was one that was engaging all members keenly. "I wish to congratulate the Russian Presidency of the SCO for organizing a successful conference on Afghanistan in March this year. India is committed to contributing to international efforts for the economic reconstruction of Afghanistan, and promoting stability in that country," he said.

The Prime Minister said the economic gains of the past were today threatened by the global financial and economic crisis. "We should convert this crisis into an opportunity for much greater economic cooperation between the Members of the SCO and India. Between us we have a vast market, a large industrial base, a talented human resource base and above all, the political will. We should also work together to reform the institutions of global governance, including financial institutions, to bring them in tune with present and emerging economic realities," he said.

"We can no longer delay giving concrete shape to the concept of sustainable development. The developing world needs access to financial resources and environment friendly technologies, especially in energy, transportation, manufacturing and agriculture. We need technology innovations for reduction of energy use by industry and other sectors. We need massive action for afforestation, drought proofing and flood protection. We need action to protect the glaciers that feed our river systems," he stressed.

Soon after he reached Yekaterinburg yesterday, Dr Singh had a meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao at which they reviewed bilateral relations and the progress on the talks between their Special Representatives on the boundary question.

The Special Representatives---National Security Adviser M K Narayanan and Chinese State Councillor Dai Bingguo---are slated to meet in Delhi on August 7 and 8 for their next round of discussions.

Dr Singh will also meet other world leaders on the sidelines of the two summits, including Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari. The meeting is expected to be very brief and more of an ice-breaker. The two have not met since the November 26, 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai, which India has blamed on elements based in Pakistan.

After the attacks, which claimed 166 lives, India has suspended the composite dialogue with Pakistan and said the process could resume only if Pakistan took concrete action against those responsible for the attacks.

Last Tuesday, Dr Singh said in Parliament that India was willing to meet Pakistan more than half-way if Pakistani leaders created the right atmosphere for the resumption of the peace talks by dismantling the terrorist infrastructure aimed at India operating out of its territory. In their brief interaction today, the two leaders are expected to discuss the way forward in the given circumstances.

Dr Singh had decided to attend the SCO Summit himself after the organisation had, at its last summit in Dushanbe,decided to raise the involvement of the Observer States to a qualitative new level.

And this time, for the first time, the Observer States and the Member States met together in both a restricted format and then in an expanded plenary where they discussed all issues together.

"My decision to attend the Summit is a reflection of the high regard we have for Russia’s Presidency of the SCO, and our desire to intensify our engagement with countries of our extended neighbourhood in Central Asia. There are issues which concern both of us, such as the fight against terrorism and extremism and cooperation in areas of energy security, infrastructure development, agriculture, transportation, science and technology and education. India and the SCO stand to gain considerably from each other through such cooperation," Dr Singh had said in a pre-departure statement yesterday.

This is Dr Singh's first foreign trip after assuming office on May 22 for a second straight five-year term in office. He is accompanied on the trip by Mr Narayanan, his Principal Secretary T K A Nair, Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and other senior officials.

Yekaterinburg is a major city in Central Russia, located on the eastern side of the Ural mountain range, and the main industrial and cultural centre of the region. With a population of about 1.3 million, it is Russia's fifth largest city. Between 1924 and 1991, the city was known as Sverdlovsk.

NNN