Paris, Dec 15 (IANS) A ministerial meeting on Afghanistan, participated also by Pakistan, expressed 'strongest solidarity' with India in the wake of the Mumbai attacks and 'underlined the regional character of terrorism and the need for visible, firm and coordinated action against terrorist groups'.
Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma represented India at the conference that is aimed at improving security and development in Afghanistan.
The conference, that ended Sunday, was hosted by France's Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner. Besides France and Afghanistan, it was attended by leading Western countries including the US, Russia, Germany, Britain, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Afghanistan and representatives of the European Union and the European Commission.
Afghanistan's neighbours, including India, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, also participated.
The declaration adopted at the meeting stated that the participants at the conference 'expressed their strongest solidarity to the Indian authorities and the Indian people after the heinous acts of terrorism committed in Mumbai on November 26th.'
The declaration also agreed that there could be no long-term security and peace in the region without a stable, secure, prosperous and democratic Afghanistan, which was in turn predicated on regional cooperation.
The statement also focused on fighting drug trafficking and terrorism as well as improving regional economic cooperation.
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