[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 18]
[House]
[Page 25167]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



          INTERNATIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE WAR ON TERRORISM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Osborne). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Skelton) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. SKELTON. Mr. Speaker, in the aftermath of the devastating attacks 
on New York and Washington on September 11, the United States has taken 
a range of swift and decisive actions to bring the terrorists 
responsible to justice and to ensure that sponsors of terrorism are 
uprooted. Our military has helped drive the Taliban from power in most 
of Afghanistan and has tightened the noose on Osama bin Laden and his 
compatriots. We have seized terrorist assets around the world, putting 
those who would help terrorists on notice that we will dry up those 
sources of support.
  In our military, diplomatic and financial efforts, the United States 
has received unprecedented support from the international community. 
Many countries around the world have converted their sympathy into real 
acts of solidarity. Our battle against terrorism is a global fight. 
Success requires sustaining a broad coalition of diplomatic and 
military partners over the long term.
  Recently, the State and Defense Departments provided me with a list 
of 29 countries plus the European Union who have contributed to our 
current counterterrorist efforts. While each country is helping in 
specific ways, they all are making a difference in our ability to 
thwart the global threat posed by terrorist groups like al Qaeda.
  Our allies in Europe are among our most committed partners. NATO took 
the unprecedented step of invoking article 5 of its charter, 
considering the attacks on the United States as attacks on the alliance 
as a whole. The European Union has offered broad diplomatic support and 
nations throughout Europe, from France and Germany to Poland, have 
offered military and domestic counterterrorism units. Unique among 
these loyal European partners is Great Britain who has stood with us 
diplomatically and fought alongside us in Afghanistan. The depth of 
this special friendship is one for which we should be profoundly 
grateful.
  Beyond our European partners, our allies in Asia-- Korea, Japan, 
Australia and New Zealand--have all provided combat or support forces 
for this fight. Our relationships with Russia and with India have 
improved greatly because of our common struggle against terrorism and 
their continued efforts to support us.
  Finally, I would like to note the remarkable actions of Muslim 
countries in this global struggle. So many are our friends and 
recognize that the war against terrorism is not a war against Islam. 
Pakistan has been crucial to our efforts in Afghanistan and has 
demonstrated great courage in helping lead the struggle against radical 
terrorism. Our NATO partner, Turkey, has provided special operations 
troops and has helped bridge the gap between the West and other Muslim 
nations. States in the Gulf and throughout Central Asia have also 
chosen to stand with the global community, seizing terrorist assets, 
providing public support for our military efforts and granting critical 
overflight and basing rights.
  As President Bush has said many times, this war will be a long and 
multifaceted one. To succeed, we will need the continued strength and 
commitment of the American people, but we will also need the ongoing 
support of our friends around the world. It is in the global interest 
to end terrorist activity and it will take global efforts to achieve 
this goal.

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