Moscow Shares French Position On Long-term Measures To Combat Terrorism

During a Kremlin meeting with French Interior Minister Daniel Vaillant, Secretary of the Russian Security Council Vladimir Rushailo said today that Moscow shared the position taken by the president of France which maintains that any action taken to combat terrorism should consist of long-term measures and not short-lived ones. Rushailo reminded the French minister that Russian President Vladimir Putin had for a long time and well before the US tragedy called for joint action to fight international terrorism. He pointed out that Russia had sent the West details about its anti-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus, including information about the organisations which were providing terrorist groups with funds. In his turn, the French interior minister stressed that he believed that the present anti-terrorist contacts with Russia were very useful. M. Vaillant said that terrorism could be international, regional or local, but all of its forms must be combated. According to him, France had confronted the terrorist problem long ago and the country's government had taken preventative measures in this sphere, though, regrettably, they had not always proved to be as effective as had been hoped. Terrorists, he said, were ready to commit the most frightening and unpredictable acts, to accomplish their own aims, whether they be dictated by financial interests, or the desire to bring religious fanaticism to power. The minster emphasised that the change in perception towards terrorism, which came about as a result of the September 11th attacks, would facilitate the coordination of consolidated efforts to fight this evil.