RIYADH DECLARATION
Of the
COUNTER TERRORISM INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

Riyadh 25-28/2/1425 (5-8/2/2005)

The participating states at the Counter terrorism international Conference held in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 25-28 Dhul Hijjah 1425H corresponding 5-8 February 2005 which are:

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Republic of Argentina,, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Kingdom of Spain, Australia, Islamic State of Afghanistan, Federal republic of Germany, State of the United Arab Emirates, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Islamic republic of Iran, republic of Italy, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Kingdom of Bahrain, Federal Republic of Brazil, Kingdom of Belgium, Republic of Turkey, United Republic of Tanzania, Republic of Tunisia, People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, Republic of South Africa, Kingdom of Denmark, Russian Federation, Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Republic of Singapore, Republic of The Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, People's Republic of China, Republic of Tajikistan, Republic of Iraq, Sultanate of Oman, Republic of France, Republic of Philippines, State of Qatar, Republic of Kazakhstan, Canada, State of Kuwait, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Lebanon, Malaysia, Arab republic of Egypt, Kingdom of Morocco, United kingdom, Republic of India, The Netherlands, United States of America, Japan, Republic of Yemen, Greece, as well as international, regional and specialized organizations which attended the Conference: The United Nations, Organization of the Islamic Conference, League of Arab States, African Union, European Union, The INTERPOL, Gulf Cooperation Council, Council of Arab Ministers of the Interior, Muslim World League.

Express their profound appreciation to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for convening and hosting this Conference held under the high patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Crown Prince and Deputy Premier and Commander of the National Guard.

Stress the fact that any international efforts will not be sufficient to effectively combat the terrorism phenomenon, if not conducted within the framework of joint actions and an all-inclusive strategic vision. In this respect, they support and adopt the proposal made by HRH the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia contained in His Highness' opening session address, which called for the establishment of an International Counter-Terrorism Centre. A task force has been established to further elaborate this proposal.

Commend the spirit of cooperation that prevailed in the Conference and the unanimity of views and positions on the extent of the danger of terrorism and the need to challenge it through united, organized, and sustained international efforts that respect the principles of international law, in particular human rights, refugee and humanitarian law that strengthen the comprehensive and central role of the United Nations.

Underline that terrorism constitutes continuous threat to peace, security and stability. No matter what pretext terrorists may use for their deeds, terrorism has no justification. Terrorism under all circumstances, regardless of the alleged motives, should be universally condemned.

Call for fostering the values of understanding, tolerance, dialogue, co-existence, pluralism and the rapprochement between cultures to reject the logic of the clash of civilizations. Also, call for fighting any form of ideology that promotes hatred, incites violence, and condones terrorist crimes which can by no means be accepted by any religion or law.

Stress the fact that terrorism has no specific religion, ethnic origin, nationality, or geographic location. In this respect, it is of paramount importance to stress that any attempt to associate terrorism with any given faith will in actual fact serve the interests of terrorists; it should be rejected wholeheartedly. Hence the need to prevent any intolerance against any religion and to lay the groundwork for understanding and cooperation founded on commonly shared values between countries with varying faiths.

Reiterate their commitment to resolutions issued by the United Nations in the fight against terrorism, which call upon the international community to condemn and combat terrorism by all means in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations in the view of the fact that terrorist acts threaten international peace and security. They also stress that the United Nations is the major forum to promote international cooperation against terrorism and that the relevant Security Council and General Assembly Resolutions constitute a solid and comprehensive foundation for fighting terrorism worldwide. All countries are therefore called upon to comply fully with the provisions of those resolutions, and to join, ratify, and implement the 12 major international conventions of combating terrorism.

Encourage individual efforts to expand political participation, achieve sustainable development, and promote the role of the civil institutions to help address the conditions that spawn violence and extremist thinking.

Stress the importance of the role to be played by the media, civil institutions, and educational systems in establishing strategies against terrorists' propaganda, while encouraging the media to set guidelines for press reports to prevent terrorists from exploiting media outlets for their communication and recruitment.

Request the United Nations to develop guidelines to facilitate the work of non-profit charitable and humanitarian relief organizations and ensure that they are not exploited for illegal activities.

Call for the promotion of inter-agency cooperation and coordination, on national, bilateral and regional levels, to combat terrorism, money-laundering, weapons and explosives trafficking, and drug smuggling. Also, call for the exchange of experiences and best practices, including training, in order to ensure effectiveness in the fight against terrorism and its links to organized crime.

Stress the need to strengthen international measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction and to support the role of the United Nations in this respect, including through full implementation of the UNSC resolution 1540.

Call for the support and assistance to requesting countries in combating terrorism, namely, by providing equipment, training, and capacity-building assistance.

Develop national legislation and procedures to prevent terrorists from abusing migration and asylum laws to establish safe havens or to use the territory of states as bases for recruiting, training, planning, inciting, or launching of terrorist operations against other states.

Stress the importance of publicly promoting shared values, tolerance, and co-existence and urging the media to refrain from publishing materials that call for extremism and violence.

Express solidarity and support for all victims of terrorism.

Saudi-US Relations Information Service
A Public Service of the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations
1730 M Street, Suite 503, NW, Washington, DC 20036
eMail: [email protected] 
Web: http://www.Saudi-US-Relations.org 

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