ASEAN to back U.S. war on terror with new pact

ASEAN to back U.S. war on terror with new pact

Reuters, Kuala Lumpur

Southeast Asian nations will sign a declaration next week to
share financial and immigration intelligence with the United
States in support of the U.S.-led war on terror, a Malaysian
official said on Wednesday.

The 10 member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) will adopt the proposed anti-terror declaration
during a regional security forum to be attended by U.S. Secretary
of State Colin Powell, the official said.

ASEAN foreign ministers are due to meet in Brunei between July
26 and Aug. 2.

"We are expecting unanimous support for the declaration," an
official at the Malaysian foreign ministry told Reuters.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,
Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said on Tuesday
the content of the ASEAN declaration would be similar to one
signed by Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad during a
visit to Washington in May.

In that pact, Kuala Lumpur agreed to cooperate with Washington
on sharing financial information and immigration control.

"We feel that it is better if ASEAN countries sign it as a
joint declaration to exchange information and combat
international terrorism," Syed Hamid was quoted as saying by
Malaysia's official Bernama news agency.

The U.S. praised Malaysia's efforts to support the U.S.-led
war on terror after it locked up dozens of suspected Islamic
militants and busted what it says were cells with links to the al
Qaeda network, blamed for the Sept. 11 attacks.