UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and French President Jacques Chirac late Wednesday stressed the need of building a broad international coalition in the fight against terrorism in the wake of last week's terrorist attacks on the US.
Speaking at a joint press conference following a luncheon hosted by Annan, the two leaders agreed that the United Nations has a key role to play in the battle against the terrorist menace, said the Kuwaiti official news agency (KUNA).
Annan noted that the coalition should embrace "as many countries as possible, because this is an issue that concerns all of us."
He warned, however, against "the tendency that is emerging in some quarters - limited quarters - that would divide the international community - finger-pointing Muslims, finger-pointing people from the Middle East or dark-skinned persons."
"We should focus on the perpetrators, build a broad coalition of nations that will fight against this and I think the Security Council and the general assembly have given us the basis to build on," he said in reference to the two UN bodies that strongly condemned the attacks one day later.
Expressing full support for Annan’s position, President Chirac added that actions would only be effective if they were carried out in an "accepted" international context.
"From this point of view, we must recognize that the United Nations is the best body possible for bringing together all of the energy, and coordinate it, and to put into effect policies," he said.
Annan, however, called for intensified efforts to get to the root causes, namely "conflict, poverty, ignorance and racism."
Desperate and despairing people, he pointed out, were easy recruits for terrorist organizations, adding, "The planners in Washington are aware of that."
The Security Council already has called on the Taliban to hand over bin Laden immediately, and initial reports said that Taliban clerics have asked the guest to leave the county voluntarily – Albawaba.com
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