G-7 Finance Ministers to Intensify Anti-Terrorism Efforts
(October 6 meeting to coordinate efforts, O'Neill says) (400)
Finance ministers and central bankers of the Group of Seven (G-7)
nations meeting October 6 in Washington will share ideas about "how we
can secure and block every dollar we can find" related to terrorist
activities and information on the state of their countries' economies,
Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neill says.
In an October 5 press briefing, O'Neill said Russia's finance minister
will participate in some of the meetings and report on Russia's
economic reforms to the finance ministers of Canada, France, Germany,
Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The treasury secretary said international cooperation to stop
terrorists' funding was strong, implemented quickly after the
September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon,
but that he'd like even more countries involved. The United States is
going to send out a message to "countries with which we don't have a
treaty relationship and say: Now is the time," he said.
O'Neill said there has been "a huge amount of activity" worldwide to
"identify and interdict" people involved in terrorist activities and
that names of individuals and organizations continue to be added to a
list of identified terrorists. "We are going to stop these people," he
said. He said that with Governor Thomas Ridge taking office as
Secretary of Homeland Security October 8, "we'll have a cohesive way
to stimulate" terrorist anti-money laundering efforts.
O'Neill added that he would work with Congress on specifics of a
$60,000-$75,000 million economic stimulus package proposed by
President Bush earlier in the week and that it would include programs
that would spur consumer spending and promote increased business
investment, sectors of the economy that have suffered since the
September 11 terrorist acts. He added that he was positive about the
United States' recovery in 2002 because "I continue to believe we have
a very strong, resilient foundation under our economy."
The secretary said he hoped the group of finance ministers would
identify some stimulus initiatives to bring the world economic growth
rate to 3 percent in 2002 instead of 2 percent as many economists have
predict since September 11.
(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Website:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
