Let?s unite against terror

The PM on Thursday made an impassioned appeal for a global offensive to root out terrorism everywhere, reports S Rajagopalan.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday made an impassioned appeal for a global offensive to root out terrorism everywhere by pooling resources and avoiding selective approaches that smacked of political expediency.

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In his maiden address to the United Nations General Assembly, Singh also made a strong pitch for comprehensive reforms of the UN system and inclusion of countries like India as permanent members of an expanded Security Council.

In a calibrated response to Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's softened Kashmir rhetoric, Singh reaffirmed India's determination to carry forward the composite dialogue process to a "purposeful and mutually-acceptable" resolution of all issues.

The prime minister was unsparing in his attack on the world community for not joining forces to crush terrorism. The sad reality today, he said, was that the terror networks appeared to be cooperating more effectively among themselves than the democratic nations that they targeted. Countries seem hesitant to pool resources, exchange information and share intelligence to battle terrorism head on.

"This must change," said Singh. "We do have a global coalition against terrorism. We must now give it substance and credibility, avoiding selective approaches and political expediency."

On UN reforms, he said, “An overwhelming majority of the world's population cannot be excluded from an institution that legislates on an increasing number of issues, with an ever-widening impact," he said.