Saudi Arabia and India on Friday called for global joint action against terrorism following the Nov. 26-29 attack on Mumbai that led to 179 deaths. The two countries agreed on the importance of coordinating efforts to eradicate terrorism, following talks between Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal and his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee. In a joint briefing here with Mukherjee, Prince Saud voiced Saudi Arabia's solidarity with India against terrorism and offered the Kingdom's condolences to the victims of the Mumbai attacks. The United Nations should set up an agency to tackle terrorism, Prince Saud said, describing such acts as “an evil and a cancer in our world.'' Noting that terrorism aims to instigate conflicts and create sedition between countries, Prince Saud said, “We should work together to counter this dangerous international phenomenon, forbid it from achieving its objectives and uproot it.” Prince Saud presented to the Indian officials a copy of the recommendations of the Feb. 2005 international counter-terrorism conference in Riyadh, which included a proposal by King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, to establish an international center to combat terrorism. Mukherjee said he had reviewed with Prince Saud issues pertaining to the attacks in Mumbai. “Global terrorism has to be dealt with by joint action among all countries,'' Mukherjee said. “We agreed that whatever action has to be taken, should be taken without delay.” India has been seeking to build a global consensus for action against terrorism following the Mumbai attacks.
