BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//http://www.aseminfoboard.org///NONSGML kigkonsult.se iCalcreator 2.10.15// METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VEVENT UID:20130523T210032CEST-8070hBsshH@http://www.aseminfoboard.org/ DTSTAMP:20130523T190032Z DESCRIPTION:Tokyo\, Japan\nBelow is the Chair's Summary of the Fifth ASEM C onference on Counter-Terrorism\, held on 15-16 May\, 2007 in Tokyo\, Japan :\n[download the PDF version here] \n\n1. The 5th ASEM Conference on Count er-Terrorism was held in Tokyo\, Japan on 15-16th May\, 2007. The conferen ce was to follow up and to further build on the results of previous ASEM C onferences on Counter-Terrorism held in Beijing (2003)\, in Berlin (2004)\ , in Semarang (2005) and in Copenhagen (2006) guided by the ASEM Copenhage n Declaration on Cooperation against International Terrorism adopted at AS EM 4 in 2002. Participants were representatives from ASEM partners as well as relevant counter terrorism institutions\; The International Law Enforc ement Academy-Bangkok (ILEA Bangkok)\, The Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcem ent Cooperation (JCLEC)\, The South East Asia Regional Centre for Counter- Terrorism (SEARCCT)\, the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directo rate (UNCTED)\, and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The conferen ce was chaired by H.E. Mr. Akio Suda\, Ambassador in charge of Internation al Counter-Terrorism Cooperation\, Japan\, with the support of two Working Groups chairs\, China and Denmark. The conference welcomed the participat ion of new ASEM partners\, Bulgaria\, India\, Mongolia\, Pakistan and Roma nia\, to the meeting.\n2. The conference recognized terrorism as a threat to all citizens and nations as well as to international peace and security in Asia\, Europe and beyond. It strongly condemned terrorism in all its f orms and manifestations\, committed by whomever\, wherever and for whateve r purposes\, irrespective of background and motivation. The conference\, r ecalling the commitments made by leaders at the ASEM Summit in September 2 006 to the fight against terrorism\, underlined the importance of a compre hensive approach from the international community to fight terrorism\, car ried out in accordance with international law\, in particular the UN Chart er\, respecting human rights\, and international humanitarian law. Equally \, the conference emphasized the rejection of any attempts to associate te rrorism with any religion\, race\, nationality\, or ethnic group.\n3. The conference shared recent terrorism threat assessments and recognized that\ , while the international effort to combat terrorism has achieved signific ant progress\, terrorism remains a serious threat to international peace a nd security. The conference recognized the need to further enhance counter -terrorism cooperation including information sharing\, tightening immigrat ion/border control\, and combating terrorist financing\, terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction\, and terrorist use of media\, particularly th e internet.\n4. The conference recognized the importance of strengthening counter terrorism capability of each ASEM partner. The conference also und erlined the need for a concerted effort by the international community to counter terrorism which includes political\, economic\, diplomatic\, legal and other means. In this context\, the conference called for further enha ncement of intra- and interregional cooperation. The participants shared i nformation on the assistance needs and assistance schemes of ASEM partners \, regional counter-terrorism centers and the United Nations with a view t o strengthening ties between Asia and Europe in order to fulfill the poten tial of their assistance cooperation.\n5. The conference reiterated ASEM’s firm supports for the leading role of the United Nations in the fight aga inst terrorism. It welcomed the adoption of the General Assembly Resolutio n on the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in September 2006 and reaffi rmed the ASEM partners’ commitment to cooperate in order to ensure their f ull implementation of the Strategy. In this context\, the conference empha sized the importance of the role of the UNCTC/CTED\, Al Qaeda/Taliban Sanc tions Committee and the UNODC. The conference called for states to become parties to and fully implement all UN Conventions and Protocols on interna tional terrorism as well as relevant UN Resolutions. In this context\, the conference noted that the UNODC can play a complementary role of providin g assistance to countries for becoming parties to and implementing the uni versal counter-terrorism instruments. The conference urged for the early c onclusion of the negotiations on the draft Comprehensive Convention on Int ernational Terrorism. The conference welcomed the adoption of the ASEAN Co unter Terrorism Convention in January 2007 as a regional tool reinforcing the international effort to strengthen the counter terrorism legal framewo rk.\n6. The conference emphasized the need for broadening and enhancing mu tual understanding among cultures and civilizations and\, for this purpose \, to promote interfaith\, inter-cultural\, inter-civilization\, and inter -media dialogue among ASEM partners as well as international community to promote public awareness and support. The initiative of the Alliance of Ci vilization can contribute to that end. The conference underscored the impo rtance of efforts to prevent radicalization. The conference shared informa tion on the measures taken by ASEM partners in this regard. In this contex t\, participants recognized the significance of empowering the public to r eject terrorists’ ideology. They also expressed support for the victims of terrorism.\n7. The conference further suggested that the following steps be taken by ASEM countries:\n\ncooperation at the national\, regional and international levels to promote comprehensive\, coordinated and consistent responses through information sharing and building adequate counter-terro rism capacity.\nefforts to address the issues of conditions conducive to t he spread of terrorism\, which include poverty and education\, recalling t he importance of peaceful settlement of conflicts\, human rights and rule of law.\ndevelopment of capacity building and technical cooperation progra ms/activities to complement regional and international activities.\npromot ion of interfaith\, inter-cultural and inter-civilization dialogue.\nrecal ling the importance of using appropriate terminology when discussing count er-terrorism issues so as not to inadvertently create misunderstandings.\n working for the full implementation of the Global Strategy on Counter-Terr orism on the international\, regional and national levels in close coopera tion with the United Nations Secretariat.\ncooperation with the United Nat ions Counter Terrorism committees to ensure full implementation of all rel evant UN Security Council Resolutions and other universal counter-terroris m instruments. \;\ncalling for the ratification of\, accession to and implementation of all the existing international conventions and protocols on international terrorism.\nseeking the early conclusion of the negotiat ions on a comprehensive convention on international terrorism.\nenhancing cooperation with regional counter-terrorism centers.\ncompleting and updat ing annually ASEM contact point for analyzing and implementing ASEM recomm endations\, and submit this information to China.\n\n8. The conference loo ked forward to the next ASEM Conference on Counter-Terrorism to be hosted by Spain in 2008.The results of this conference will be presented at the E ighth ASEM Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on 29-30 May 2007 in Hamburg\, Germa ny. [end] DTSTART:20070514T180000 DTEND:20070515T180000 LOCATION:Japan (Japan \, ) SUMMARY:5th ASEM Conference on Counter-Terrorism END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR