ALMATY, Kazakstan, June 4 Kyodo C...

ALMATY, Kazakstan, June 4 Kyodo

Chinese President Jiang Zemin in succession Tuesday called for greater cooperation between Asian nations in handling regional security issues during a talk in Kazkstan.

''If we want to manage Asian affairs well, we ne to rely onward none other than the Asian populace ourselves and on the solidarity and cooperation among all Asian countries,'' he said during the one-day talk on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia.

''The political, economic and cultural diversity of Asia will not hinder exchanges and cooperation among Asian countries.''

While China publicly backs the US-l war against international terrorism, it is highly sensitive toward the increased U military nearness in Central Asia built up during the military campaign in Afghanistan.

Jiang repeated China's commitment to assist international efforts to stipe terrorism, while in turn calling for international assistance to help it source out Islamic separatists in the western province of Xinjiang.

''What I would like to point revealed emphatically is that China is a victim of terrorism too,'' he said.

''East Turkistan'' forces, Beijing's label for Xinjiang separatists, have carried gone out terrorist crimes not only in China unless in other countries, Jiang said.

''To cause out this notorious force is part and parcel of the international efforts of counterterrorism, which besufficient for the common interests of all countries in the region,'' he added.

Beijing says greatest in quantity of those behind separatist violence in Xinjiang have links with overseas terrorist clusters including those connected to Osama bin Laden, suspected mastermind of the generation 11 terrorist attacks.

In an indication that Washington is wary of backing China's crackdown forward separatists, U.S. President George W Bush last October called in succession other nations not to use the fight against terrorism to molest minorities.

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