Vajpayee, Putin sign Declaration on global terror

Taking a major step forward to fight international terrorism, Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a pol...

Taking a major step forward to fight international terrorism, Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a political declaration on global challenges and threats to world security after their talks in Kremlin today.

8216;8216;We have agreed to strengthen and widen our cooperation against terrorism both in bilateral and multilateral forums,8217;8217; Vajpayee said.

8216;8216;We have a joint working group which meets regularly to exchange information and analysis of terrorist threats in our region,8217;8217; the PM said, referring to the discussion on the concerns the two sides had 8216;8216;in the neighbourhood8217;8217;.

The declaration is aimed at further enhancing political cooperation between the two countries in dealing with challenges and threats faced by the world, including international terrorism, trans-national organised crime, drug-trafficking, money laundering and environmental and developmental challenges as major issues that require collective efforts.

In all, ten agreements were signed. Among them were protocol between the Foreign Ministries of the two countries on the joint publication of bilateral archive diplomatic documents, joint report on the implementation of steps elaborated in the joint economic declaration signed during the visit of Putin to India in 2000, five agreements in fields of science and technology and space.

8216;8216;This document defines the direction of our interaction in the international arena. Among the most dangerous threats, as the PM noted, is terrorism, drug-trafficking, organised crime and other problems,8217;8217; Putin said. 8216;8216;We see the current visit of Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee as an important stage in the development of our bilateral relations, which is being speeded up in the framework of friendliness and openness,8217;8217; he added.

8216;8216;It is important to develop the components of the Indo-Russian strategic partnership, including in the fields of trade and economic, scientific and technological cooperation as well as military-technical cooperation with future perspectives in view,8217;8217; Putin said. 8216;8216;Our negotiations in Moscow, have proved that the thrust and character of our dialogue are changing and the unique and multifaceted nature of Indo-Russian strategic partnership is developing,8217;8217; he said.