 Asia-Pacific leaders vowed yesterday to dismantle the âterroristâ groups that have carried out a series of deadly attacks in the region. âWe condemned terrorist acts in the region that took thousands of lives and aimed to destabilise economic prosperity and security in the Asia-Pacific region,â the 21 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders said. Terror attacks âconstitute a clear challenge,â the leaders said in a statement released at the end of their two-day annual summit in the South Korean city of Busan. âTo confront these ongoing threats, we reaffirmed our commitment... to review progress on our efforts to dismantle trans-boundary terrorist groups, eliminate the threat of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery,â the leaders said.
 US President George W. Bush, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Hu Jintao agreed to the statement that also stressed that any new counter-terrorism measures must comply with laws on human rights. Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the prime minister of largely Muslim Malaysia, said the leaders spent time discussing terrorism and how it should not be linked to the Islamic faith. The root causes of terrorism must be addressed, but anti-terrorism measures that target the Muslim community as a whole would be counter-productive, he told a news conference. |