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The United Nations (UN) Security Council's move to define the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM) as a terrorist organization was hailed yesterday as an "encouraging result" for international counter-terrorism cooperation.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said China, the United States, Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan jointly called for the movement's addition to the council's terrorism list and have submitted relevant material to the council about its activities.
A UN spokesman said on Wednesday ETIM was added to the list of groups with links to al-Qaida and the Taliban.
The spokesman said a person named Wa 'el Hamza Julaidan has also been added.
During a visit to Beijing last month, US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage said the US Government considered ETIM as a terrorist organization that has carried out acts of violence against civilians.
Armitage said the US will cooperate with China to crack down on terrorist forces, especially to cut off their financial sources.
Kong said ETIM is the most damaging of the East Turkistan terrorism forces.
"It aims to split China and establish in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region an 'East Turkistan Islamic nation,' which combines religion with politics," he said.
"It is an out-and-out terrorist organization."
Kong said ETIM has close ties with Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network.
As part of the international terrorist force, the organization has committed a number of violent acts inside and outside China, posing a serious threat to regional security and stability.
Kong said the explosion of a storehouse in Urumqi in May 1998 and a similar explosion in Hotan the following March were committed by ETIM.
Incomplete statistics show that a series of explosion committed by ETIM have killed 166 people and injured an estimated 440 more in China.
Kong said China will continue to strengthen its cooperation with the international community to fight all forms of terrorism, in addition to ETIM.
Police have raided 44 ETIM shelters and confiscated 4,500 anti-tank grenades and other weapons in their fight against the organization.
(China Daily September 13, 2002)
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