Clinton says danger from terrorism remains urgent, undeniable

Istanbul, June 7 (Xinhua-ANI): U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said here Thursday that the danger from terrorism still remains urgent and undeniable.

In a speech at the opening of the two-day Global Counterterrorism Forum held in Istanbul, Clinton noted that the threat of terrorism has spread and become more geographically diverse.

"We need a strategic, comprehensive approach to counter terrorism that integrates both military and civilian power, that uses intelligence, law enforcement, diplomacy development, and humanitarian assistance," she said.

"To defeat a terrorist network, we need to do more than to remove terrorists from the battlefield," she said, "We need to attack finances, recruitment and safe havens."

The Global Counterterrorism Forum, held in Istanbul's Conrad Hotel and co-chaired by Clinton and Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, is meant to bring together traditional allies, emerging powers and Muslim-majority countries.

"In recent years, we have made stride in the fight against terrorism," Clinton said, adding that over the past decade more than 120,000 suspect terrorists were arrested in the world and more than 35,000 have been convicted, including Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida's leadership.

"Our citizens are safer because of the work we have done together. But despite this progress, the danger from terrorism remains urgent and undeniable," she said.

Clinton said the forum emphasizes strengthening civilian institutions in the process of counterterrorism, and pointed to the importance of the rule of law. "I am here to underscore that the United States will work with all of you to combat terrorism within the framework of the rule of law," she said.

"We will always maintain our right to use force against groups such as al-Qaida," Clinton added.

The Turkish foreign minister said Turkey is fully committed to the fight against the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), which continues its activities abroad, particularly in Europe.

Clinton voiced her support to Turkey in its fight against PKK.

As an effort to build the international framework for dealing with terrorism in the 21st century, the Global Counterterrorism Forum is aimed at providing a platform for policy-makers and experts from both the member countries and outside parties to identify urgent needs, devise solutions and mobilize resources to address the key challenges in counterterrorism. Officials from over 20 countries attended the forum. Their discussions focus on the work carried out over the last six months within the

framework of this forum, in areas such as criminal justice, the rule of law, counter-radicalization, and capacity- building in several regions.

On a technical level, the forum will make it possible to compare means and methods used to combat terrorist groups, and to establish practices helpful to the entire international community. (Xinhua-ANI)