U.S. administration supports Russian initiative on government-business partnership in fighting terrorism

September 29 - The Bush administration wholeheartedly supports Russia's initiative on government-business partnership in the fight against terrorism, said Frank Urbancic, Principal Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the U.S. Department of State.

"We wholeheartedly support this Russian initiative advanced as part of Russia's G8 presidency to promote dialogue between the public and private sectors in the fight against terror," Urbancic said Thursday at a meeting in the Russian Embassy in Washington in the run-up to an international forum on involving the business community in the fight against terrorism, to be held in Moscow in late November.

The principal deputy coordinator said a delegation from the U.S. government and business community would attend the forum, and that Russia's idea complemented the American strategy of using all elements of national power to repel the terrorist threat.

These elements include diplomatic, judicial and law-enforcement measures, the supremacy of law, as well as military and economic might, Urbancic said. He called for greater involvement by non-government bodies, notably the business community, in the fight.

"We should act jointly with our partners, allies and non-government bodies that have similar approaches to the issue," Urbancic said.

Russian Ambassador Yury Ushakov said at the meeting that international terrorism had become a new global challenge.

"Terrorism can be compared to what Leon Trotsky described as a permanent revolution," Ushakov said. "It is a self-reproducing movement employing dangerous ideologies and seeking to force its ill will on the world's nations."

The ambassador said: "It is perfectly clear that governments cannot resolve this problem single-handedly. We need the assistance of our business communities to strengthen our countries' security, protect our economies from destructive blows, and preserve a stable business climate, as well as create the most favorable conditions possible for economic development."

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