06 October 2001

G-7 Finance Ministers to Intensify Anti-Terrorism Efforts

Finance ministers and central bankers of the Group of Seven (G-7) nations meeting October 6 in Washington will share ideas about "how we can secure and block every dollar we can find" related to terrorist activities and information on the state of their countries' economies, Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neill says.

In an October 5 press briefing, O'Neill said Russia's finance minister will participate in some of the meetings and report on Russia's economic reforms to the finance ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The treasury secretary said international cooperation to stop terrorists' funding was strong, implemented quickly after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, but that he'd like even more countries involved. The United States is going to send out a message to "countries with which we don't have a treaty relationship and say: Now is the time," he said.

O'Neill said there has been "a huge amount of activity" worldwide to "identify and interdict" people involved in terrorist activities and that names of individuals and organizations continue to be added to a list of identified terrorists. "We are going to stop these people," he said. He said that with Governor Thomas Ridge taking office as Secretary of Homeland Security October 8, "we'll have a cohesive way to stimulate" terrorist anti-money laundering efforts.

O'Neill added that he would work with Congress on specifics of a $60,000-$75,000 million economic stimulus package proposed by President Bush earlier in the week and that it would include programs that would spur consumer spending and promote increased business investment, sectors of the economy that have suffered since the September 11 terrorist acts. He added that he was positive about the United States' recovery in 2002 because "I continue to believe we have a very strong, resilient foundation under our economy."

The secretary said he hoped the group of finance ministers would identify some stimulus initiatives to bring the world economic growth rate to 3 percent in 2002 instead of 2 percent as many economists have predict since September 11.