22 April 2006
United States, India Continue Cooperation Against Terrorism
U.S.-India Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism meets in Washington
The United States and India reiterated their commitment to cooperate against terrorism in a statement issued by the U.S.-India Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism April 21.
“The discussions advanced U.S.-India cooperation in areas of common concern such as bioterrorism, aviation security, advancements in biometrics, cyber-security and terrorism, WMD-terrorism, terrorist finance and money laundering and violent extremism, ” according to the statement released by the U.S. Department of State April 21.
The parties also discussed real-time information sharing, quick response to requests for counterterrorism assistance, collaboration on upgrading terrorism preparedness and response capabilities, and improvements to current mechanisms for extradition and legal cooperation.
The meeting, held April 19 and 20 in Washington, was the seventh since the working group was established in January 2000. The next session will be held in New Delhi later in 2006, the statement said.
Following is the text of the joint statement:
(begin text)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
April 21, 2006
Media Note
Joint United States-India Statement on the
India-US Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism
Following is the text of a joint statement issued by the United States and India at the conclusion of the India-US Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism.
BEGIN TEXT:
The 7th meeting of the India-US Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism, which was established in 2000, was held in Washington on April 19-20, 2006. The Indian delegation was led by Ambassador K.C. Singh, Additional Secretary (International Organizations), Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. The U.S. delegation was led by Ambassador Henry Crumpton, Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Department of State. A list of the delegations is attached.
The discussions advanced US-India cooperation in areas of common concern such as bioterrorism, aviation security, advancements in biometrics, cyber-security and terrorism, WMD-terrorism, terrorist finance and money laundering and violent extremism. Both sides agreed to share information on a real time basis, respond to counterterrorism assistance requests expeditiously and collaborate to upgrade preparedness and capability to deal with acts of terrorism. Joint counterterrorism exercises will be scheduled and specific training programs in priority areas developed. The delegations also focused on improving the current mechanisms for extradition and legal cooperation.
The two sides agreed that the next session of the Joint Working Group would be held in New Delhi later this year.
(end text)
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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