India, France call for concerted effort to deal with terrorism

Singh and Sarkozy, who met here on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit, discussed the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan along with a host of bilateral issues including implementation of the civil nuclear cooperation agreement and global economic crisis.

In the context of Afghan-Pakistan situation, the two leaders agreed on the need for international community to beef up efforts to deal with terrorism, External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash told reporters after the 50-minute meeting.

"Both sides spoke of the need for concerted effort on the part of the international community to boost further the counter-terrorism effort," Prakash said.Noting that India and France have similar outlook on the situation in Afghanistan, the spokesman said it was in common interest to see peace and tranquility return to the region.

He said it was important that the international community stays course in helping to bring about stability, security and economic development in Afghanistan. "That is how India sees the situation and in our interaction we find France having similar outlook," Prakash said.

During the meeting, Singh reiterated invitation to Sarkozy and First Lady Carla Bruni to visit India. The French President will visit the country in the last quarter of this year.
Sarkozy conveyed French support for permanent membership for India in the UN Security Council. He said India should get its rightful place in the comity of nations.
The two leaders discussed issues related to the upcoming G-20 Summit to be held in Toronto.

The Prime Minister opined that the G-20, in order to continue to remain relevant, should formulate concrete steps to sustain the global economic recovery and decide what aspects of it should maintain.He cautioned against complacency and spoke of his desire to push towards a new world monetary order.The two leaders exchanged views on commodity price regulations.