India among 'Group of Friends Against Terrorism' at UN

New York: India and Pakistan are among the 30 countries named in the 'Group of Friends Against Terrorism' created at the UN at the initiative of Morocco.

The group consists of 30 countries, including the five permanent members of the Security Council.

Morocco’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Omar Hilale, presided over the launch of the group at the UN headquarters on Tuesday expressing the hope that it would “create synergies between all initiatives” implemented within the UN, promote international cooperation in combating terrorism and share and exchange good practices in the fight against this scourge that threatens international peace and security, the Maghreb Daily News reported.

Hilale said that the group wanted an “informal and flexible space to discuss, coordinate and give impetus to UN activities in the field of fight against terrorism, arguing that terrorism was a constant threat to peace and international security.

“The recent attacks in Tunisia, Libya, Mali, France, Pakistan, India, Australia and Nigeria challenge the international community to act and make greater efforts in this area,” he said.

The creation of this group was welcomed by all the ambassadors of member countries, who see it as a “step in the right direction”, saying that this group can play a “leading role” to consolidate the initiatives and efforts of various UN bodies in the area of counter-terrorism.

They congratulated Morocco on its commitment in the fight against terrorism.

In addition to the five permanent members of the Security Council, this group is representative of the five continents and is composed of African, European, Asian, Latin American and Oceanic countries.

The group will meet once a year at the ministerial level on the margins of the General Assembly of the UN, and every two months at the level of permanent representatives accredited to the UN in New York.