12 June 2002

G8 Foreign Ministers Detail Progress in Fighting Terrorism

The foreign ministers of the G8 countries issued a statement June 13 noting that "further terrorist attacks remain a very real danger against which we must remain ever vigilant."

The statement also reported progress being made in three areas:

• Strengthening security measures within and between the G8 nations;

• Implementing and strengthening international measures against terrorism; and

• Assisting other nations in implementing counterterrorism measures.

Expressing their commitment to building a safer world, the G8 ministers said terrorists "cannot be allowed to disrupt global trade by attacking maritime, aviation or road transport. We have been developing procedures for securing these trading networks."

Following is the text of the G8 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and Russia) statement:

June 12, 2002
G8 Foreign Ministers' Meeting
Whistler, British Columbia
12-13 June, 2002
Progress Report on the Fight Against Terrorism

We, the G8 Foreign Ministers, agreed under the Italian presidency that the heinous terrorist attacks on the United States last September 11, required a collective response. We also agreed, and continue to agree, that further attacks remain a very real danger, against which we must remain ever vigilant. For these reasons, we have been working since last fall, at the request of G8 leaders and drawing on our quarter century of cooperation on counterterrorism, to develop concrete measures to fight terrorism. Our goal is to ensure that terrorist attacks like the one on September 11 will never happen again.

We can report progress in three main areas of this ongoing effort: strengthening security measures in our own countries and with each other; implementing and strengthening international measures against terrorism; and assisting other countries in implementing counterterrorism measures. These efforts have been coordinated with the work of G7 Ministers of Finance and G8 Ministers of Justice and Interior.

Strengthening security measures in our own countries and with each other

We have begun by putting our own houses in order first. G8 members have implemented new laws and policies strengthening our political, diplomatic, military, legal, intelligence, law enforcement and financial counterterrorism activities. Collectively, we have invested billions of dollars in enhancing security. These domestic changes have been devised to ensure comparable levels of security in all G8 countries and to facilitate cooperation among us routinely and in times of crisis.

Police, judges and all other relevant experts of the G8 now share more information and coordinate their activities to identify and, where they exist, disrupt the linkages between drug trafficking, organized crime, smuggling of migrants and terrorism financing. This is essential as terrorists themselves are well integrated into crime networks.

We have also been implementing new standards to ensure the safety of the traveling public, nationally and internationally, whether by air, land or sea. G8 airlines have tight new security standards and demanding performance tests. We are providing substantial new voluntary contributions to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), particularly to its aviation security program. These contributions will pay for audits of every state's aviation security system to ensure compliance with international standards and to spur the development of new safeguards.

Implementing and strengthening international measures against terrorism

We are implementing U.N. Security Council Resolution (UNSC) 1373 along with all of the U.N. counterterrorism instruments, and we are making efforts to further strengthen international obligations in this area. In particular, we are working to ensure adherence to these U.N. counterterrorism instruments, which require countries to implement specific measures to prevent and combat terrorist threats, such as bombing, hijacking and hostage-taking. Together with UNSC Resolution 1373, these instruments also require states to take measures to deny safe haven and prevent terrorist financing, recruitment, supply of weapons and other support. The U.N. has a pivotal role in common efforts aimed at combating terrorism. We will also persevere in our efforts to promote international consensus on the U.N. Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism and on the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism.

Terrorists cannot be allowed to disrupt global trade by attacking maritime, aviation or road transport. We have been developing procedures for securing these trading networks. Nor can terrorists be allowed to have access to weapons of mass destruction. We have discussed what must be done to prevent terrorists, or those who harbor them, from gaining access to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) weapons and missiles. G8 members call on all countries in the world to adhere to, fully comply with, and, as necessary, strengthen multilateral instruments such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. We are exchanging information and expertise on illicit flows of sensitive materials, taking measures to protect materials and facilities, and strengthening both national and international export controls against smuggling networks. We are supporting the enhanced counterterrorist responsibility of the International Atomic Energy Agency and promoting wider adherence to safeguards. We are also fostering international non-proliferation efforts, including an initiative to dispose of plutonium no longer required for defense purposes.

Assisting other countries in implementing counterterrorism measures

However, implementing measures at home and strengthening the international regime are not enough. We are committed to assisting other countries to implement their U.N. counterterrorism obligations. We are helping to build their capacity to fight terrorism through training, institution-building, cooperation among law enforcement and intelligence groups, and sharing technical expertise. We have been cooperating closely with the U.N. Counter-Terrorism Committee in these efforts and will continue to do so. We have developed new G8 Recommendations on Counterterrorism, which we intend to promote in our outreach to other countries. These recommendations complement the G8 Recommendations on Transnational Crime released on May 14, by G8 Justice and Interior Ministers. Foreign Ministers request further work on counterterrorism practices and standards.

Efforts to combat terrorism do not end here. Further action is required from all nations -- individually and collectively -- to sustain a truly effective global offensive against terrorism. We are committed to cooperating with the international community in this continuous effort to build a safer world.