New Delhi: India has been trying to sign extradition treaty with as many countries
as possible in view of threats posed by terrorism to peace and stability, Deputy
Prime Minister L K Advani said on January 20.
"It is not India alone which is having to bear the brunt of terrorism... Now of
course after September 11 (terrorist strikes in US) everyone is conscious of it and
so more and more countries are willing to sign treaties, which enable them to face
the problem," Advani told a television channel ahead of his five-day tour of France
and Qatar beginning on January 21.
Advani, who would be signing an extradition treaty with France during his visit to
Paris, said extradition and mutual legal assistance treaties and joint working
groups against terrorism helped in sharing of intelligence and led to co-ordinated
action in dealing with terrorism.
"We have been trying to sign with as many countries as possible such treaties,
though in the early part of our tenure we made them (various countries) conscious
that terrorism is a global problem," the Deputy Prime Minister said.
Advani, who would be paying the first official visit to France on January 23 and 24,
said the principal purpose of his visit was to sign an extradition treaty with
France.
During his stay in Paris, Advani would hold wide-ranging talks on major bilateral
and international issues with French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin and
Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy.
France shares India's concerns on terrorism and is of the view that the scourge in
all its forms should be eliminated through concerted international campaign.
The discussions in Paris "are part of the steady flow of high-level exchanges
between India and France to broaden and strengthen our bilateral co-operation", a
senior official said on the eve of the Deputy Prime Minister's tour.
Advani had gone to Paris in June 2000 as Home Minister, a post he continues to hold,
to discuss security issues with his French counterpart.
On the first leg of his tour, Advani would hold talks with the Qatari leadership in
Doha on January 21 on the entire gamut of bilateral ties besides exchanging views on
issues of regional and international concern including the Iraq crisis and
developments in the Middle East.
On January 22, Advani would fly to Rhodes in Greece for a technical halt enroute to
Paris. On his return, he would stop over for a night in Istanbul and have a brief
refuelling halt in Bahrain before reaching home on January 25.
PTI
