Bangkok: Noting that terrorism was raising its head even in South East Asia, now, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on October 9 highlighted the need to eradicate organised crime, piracy, drug trafficking, counterfeiting and other such elements from the region.

Addressing the joint session of Thai Parliament as the first foreign leader, Vajpayee said that the scourge of terror was not limited to a few regions of the world.

As open democratic societies both India and Thailand were also increasingly at risk from the forces that "exploited the freedoms of our societies to wage war on us," he said.

"The ugly face of terrorism is now seen increasingly even in South East Asia. It has been with us in India for over two decades," Vajpayee told an appreciative audience.

He noted that being maritime neighbours, both the countries had a common interest in economic development of the neighbourhood as also in the security of the waterways. "We need to eradicate organised crime, piracy, drug trafficking, counterfeiting and other such elements from our region.

"We should join forces to ensure that the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea area becomes a zone of genuine peace and development," Vajpayee said.

PTI