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Actions taken around the world as coalition begins air strikes in Afghanistan
By The Associated Press
Recent international actions and events connected with terrorist attacks in the United States:
MIDDLE EAST
___ EGYPT: President Hosni Mubarak says Tuesday he supports U.S. anti-terror campaign. Students stage peaceful anti-U.S. protests. Mubarak urges Washington to resolve the Palestinian issue, saying it of "great importance" to the eradication of terrorism.
___ ISRAEL: Supports airstrikes wholeheartedly and offers "discreet assistance" such as intelligence, but stresses that this is a battle of the free world against Muslim fundamentalist terrorism, not a direct consequence of the Israel-Arab conflict, and that Israel is not directly involved. The Sharon government suspects that American moves to placate the Palestinians, in order to bolster the anti-terrorist coalition in the Arab world, will be at Israel's expense.
___ IRAN: Condemns air strikes. Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says America's real objective is "domination and expansion." President Mohammad Khatami says attacks should stop immediately. Iran returns dozens of Afghan refugees Wednesday in line with policy of closing its border. Its Red Crescent Society complains Afghan authorities are stopping it from erecting camps for displaced people within Afghanistan.
___ IRAQ: President Saddam Hussein condemns airstrikes as "act of aggression." Two days later ruling Baath Party organizes mass demonstration in Baghdad where protesters chant "God is greater than America!"
___ KUWAIT: Supports airstrikes, saying it could not contribute forces but would provide intelligence to the United States. Government condemns bin Laden's spokesman, Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, and strips him of Kuwaiti citizenship. Abu Ghaith called for holy war against the United States in a videotape broadcast by an Arab television channel.
___ JORDAN: Supports airstrikes, but urges the West to pursue "a just solution to the Palestinian problem," which it describes as a primary cause of frustration in the Middle East. King Abdullah II orders delivery of aid to Afghan people, visits Italy and Germany in diplomatic effort to promote Middle East peace process.
___ LEBANON: Criticizes airstrikes, with Information Minister Ghazi Aridi asking if the question of terrorism will apply to Israel.
___ PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY: Leader Yasser Arafat says he is with the coalition against terrorism and is willing to put all the capabilities of the Palestinians into a war against "blind terrorism."
Islamic opposition groups Hamas and the Islamic Jihad hold demonstrations all over the West Bank and the Gaza Strip supporting Bin Laden and calling for an end to the air strikes. Palestinian police open fire at one demonstration in Gaza, killing two demonstrators and injuring dozens.
___ QATAR: Hosts meeting of Organization of the Islamic Conference. The emir, Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, opens meeting by condemning Sept. 11 attacks. He urges Washington to confine its retaliation to the culprits and to provide "conclusive evidence" against them. Meeting rejects "targeting any Islamic or Arab state under the pretext of fighting terrorism" and expresses concern over Afghan civilian casualties. Qatar donates $10 million to Afghan aid fund.
___ SAUDI ARABIA: Issues no statement on airstrikes, but donates $10 million to an Afghan aid fund. Editorials in state-controlled press urge Washington not to extend airstrikes to Arab states and to address Israel's conduct in the Palestinian territories. Government has previously denounced bin Laden and withdrawn his citizenship.
___ SUDAN: Two days of mass protests in Khartoum, with demonstrators shouting "Long live bin Laden!" and "Down with America!" Government condemns airstrikes. Two major opposition parties say Washington has the right to retaliate for Sept. 11 attacks, but should show who was responsible for them.
___ SYRIA: Wins two-year seat on U.N. Security Council. Washington does not veto Syria's candidacy, despite listing it as a sponsor of terrorists, in what is seen as a move to procure Syrian support for anti-terrorism coalition. Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa says in Qatar that any attack on a Muslim nation is "forbidden." However, he does not criticize the United States.
___ UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: Issues statement offering sympathy to the Afghan people. Approves bill to crack down on money laundering, following reports that funds used in the Sept. 11 attacks passed through the Emirates. Donates $3 million to an Afghan aid fund.
SUBCONTINENT/CENTRAL ASIA:
AZERBAIJAN: Hands over an Egyptian citizen accused of involvement in international terrorism to Egyptian authorities. Officials refuse to comment on the suspect's possible involvement in the Sept. 11 attacks against U.S. targets.
___ BANGLADESH – Islamic as well as leftist parties, human rights groups and factory workers have protested the U.S. attacks on Afghanistan; the demonstrators have included supporters of fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami and Islamic Unity – two coalition partners of Bangladesh's new government. Seven people die and 50 others are injured Friday when a speeding bus plows through protest marchers.
___ INDIA – Government bans planned protest march to the U.S. Embassy by Muslims after Friday prayers in New Delhi; allows Hindu national protest against Pakistan and bin Laden outside Parliament. Government says it will supply 1 million tons of wheat, plus tents and blankets, to Afghanistan humanitarian effort. Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh says "The neutralization of Afghanistan as a terrorist base is of direct benefit to India's national interest."
___ KAZAKSTAN: First Deputy Prime Minister Daniyal Akhmetov says all troops placed on alert. Customs officials have strengthened controls on the southern border with Uzbekistan and created units to prevent smuggling of weapons and drugs, says Rasul Mirakhmetov, the deputy customs chief.
___ PAKISTAN – Police and paramilitary troops fire tear gas Sunday to repel hundreds of angry Muslim militants marching toward a Pakistani air base where U.S. personnel are reportedly working. Pakistan's military government has officially denied that U.S. soldiers and aircraft are inside the country, but officials confirmed on condition of anonymity that the country has allowed U.S. military aircraft to land.
___ TAJIKISTAN: Officials say U.S. representatives have arrived in Tajikistan but give conflicting reasons for their presence, with some saying they were to help conduct search-and-rescue operations and others saying they were to concentrate on providing humanitarian aid.
___ UZBEKISTAN: President Islam Karimov calls on Uzbeks to show unity and resist extremists' attempts to recruit young people. Authorities establish a three-mile exclusion zone around the Khanabad air base, where U.S. planes have reportedly landed, to prevent journalists and others from approaching.
ASIA
AUSTRALIA: Agrees to a U.S. request to keep frigate HMAS Anzac stationed in the Persian Gulf for eight days longer than planned; invokes its defense treaty with the United States, clearing way for military participation in any U.S. retaliatory strikes. Puts 150 commandos, refueling aircraft and surveillance planes on standby to join the U.S. mission. Organizers cancel major Arabic festival, fearing it may be the target of anti-Islamic attacks.
___ CAMBODIA: Prime Minister Hun Sen supports the air strikes as the start of a campaign to free the Afghan people from being "hostages of terrorism."
___ CHINA: Tempers its support for military strikes by saying it is "very important" that they target terrorists only, not the Afghan people or Muslims. Calls for formation of a coalition government in Afghanistan, breaking with long-standing policy of noninterference in other countries' internal affairs. Announces closure of China's border with Afghanistan, bars foreigners from border area, and stations extra troops there. Appeals for foreign support in its own battle against militants seeking to liberate western region of Xinjiang from Chinese rule. Says it has evidence that the militants have colluded with terrorists overseas.
___ HONG KONG: There have been small, peaceful protests against the use of force against targets in Afghanistan, although the Hong Kong government previously said it backed efforts to eradicate terrorism.
The biggest local English-language daily, South China Morning Post, editorializes on Tuesday that the U.S.-led retaliations would be "a sure recipe for future terrorist attacks against the West" if America and its allies confine themselves to their short-term goals of uprooting Osama bin Laden's network in Afghanistan and removing the Taliban from power, and then getting out of the region.
___ INDONESIA: Ignoring anti-American demonstrations, President Megawati Sukarnoputri reiterates cooperation in war on terrorism. Other senior officials warn that that the world's largest Islamic nation is worried civilian deaths. Protests continue through the week outside the U.S. Embassy.
___ JAPAN: Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi pushes a package of bills aimed at authorizing non-combat support for the U.S. campaign against terrorism. Government adds 23 names to a list of individuals and organizations whose assets will frozen because of ties to terrorist groups, National Police Agency deploys about 400 riot police to guard U.S. military facilities on Okinawa.
___ LAOS: Communist government says it "understands" reason for the U.S.-British military action, but voices concern that innocent people in Afghanistan could suffer.
___ MALAYSIA: Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad says Friday that U.S.-led strikes against Afghanistan should be immediately stopped. "We are against such an attack because I don't think it is going to help in combatting terrorism," he told reporters.
Outside the U.S. Embassy, about 3,000 people stage the largest protest against the U.S.-led strikes yet seen in Malaysia. Police use chemical-laced water cannons to break up the protest, and no injuries or arrests are reported.
___ MYANMAR: Military government, often criticized strongly by the West for its human rights record, makes no published reaction to the air strikes.
___ NEW ZEALAND: Offers unspecified number of commandos to join fighting if requested. Despite being suspended for 15 years from a military treaty with the United States and Australia over New Zealand's anti-nuclear legislation, Foreign Minister Phil Goff states: "We don't need a treaty to tell us what is right and what is wrong."
___ PHILIPPINES: President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, battling Muslim extremist rebels of the Abu Sayyaf group in the south who have kidnapped and killed U.S. citizens, pledges continuing support for the war on terrorism. Terrorism has killed "U.S. citizens in the Philippines and Filipinos in the U.S.," she said. "That's why we must continue to show support for the international war against terrorism."
___ SINGAPORE: Supports military strikes in Afghanistan. Trade Minister George Yeo says Friday "we must be resolute in ridding the world of this scourge of global terrorism."
People holding passports from Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Egypt and Pakistan will now have to apply for visas before coming to Singapore, the government announces Thursday, without saying why. Security companies in Singapore say they have had a massive increase in the demand for armed guards and security systems since the terrorist attacks in the United States.
___ SOUTH KOREA: Has expressed full support for U.S. efforts to fight terrorism; offers to send 450 medics and other non-combat military troops to help U.S. forces. On Thursday, President Kim Dae-jung tells visiting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James Kelly that his government fully supports the U.S. military strikes as an "appropriate" measure against terrorism.
___ TAIWAN: Supports U.S.-British strikes. It offers to allow U.S. jets to use its airspace and to help fund relocation of Afghan refugees.
___ THAILAND: Traditionally a strong U.S. ally, Thailand says it supports the war on terrorism under the U.N. resolution but wants air strikes to be limited. Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra tells Thais to worry less about the war in Afghanistan, more about the flagging domestic economy. Muslim minority, not known for radicalism, opposes the war and urges Thai neutrality. Some critics are concerned by reports that U.S. planes are using U-Tapao air base in eastern Thailand as a refueling or transit point. Thailand quietly allowed the United States such facilities during the Gulf War.
___ VIETNAM: Has backed efforts to eliminate worldwide terrorism but criticizes any use of military force that violates national sovereignty and causes civilian casualties. "Vietnam demands an end to, and no recurrence of, war," Prime Minister Phan Van Khai says during a visit to Spain Monday. Vietnam also urges the United States to help stop terrorist attacks against Vietnam by U.S.-based anti-communist Vietnamese groups.
EUROPE
NATO: Sends five radar aircraft from an alliance base in Germany to the United States to free up American planes for use in operations against terrorism. A NATO naval force of nine ships from eight countries sails to the eastern Mediterranean to boost NATO presence in the region.
___ BELGIUM: As president of the European Union, Belgium works to bolster the international coalition against terrorism on the diplomatic front. It leads a European Union-Africa summit on Wednesday that comes out with a strong condemnation of international terrorism.
At a local level, the government sets up an awareness program on the dangers of bio-terrorism and makes an inventory of the available vaccines and antibiotics.
___ BRITAIN: Missile-firing submarines join the United States in the initial strikes against Afghanistan. Prime Minister Tony Blair visits Oman and Egypt in continuing diplomatic effort to promote coalition. Defense officials suggest campaign in Afghanistan might continue into mid-2002.
___ CROATIA: President Stipe Mesic visits leaders of the country's Muslim community late Thursday in a bid to promote "dialogue and tolerance between humans, religions and civilizations."
"Islam should not come under condemnation because of the terrorist attack on the U.S." Mesic says. "For if we condemn Islam for that crime, then Christianity would come under blame for the death camps of World War II, and that simply is absurd."
Mesic appeals for good relations with neighboring Bosnia and its Muslim majority.
___ CYPRUS: Has placed its airports and airspace at the disposal of the US Air Force indefinitely. Extra security measures are in force at the ports and airports and outside the United States and other western embassies.
Bookings for the winter months and next year are down between 50 and 75 percent, though tourist arrivals held up during September and October. Tourism is Cyprus' biggest industry, and the government is mounting a publicity campaign to stress that it is a safe destination.
___ DENMARK: NATO country is sending 40 soldiers to replace British soldiers in Macedonia after the United States asked allies to plug any holes in NATO manpower created by U.S. and British commitments in Afghanistan.
___ FRANCE: Defense officials say France is studying an "air contribution" to the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, but has reached no conclusion.
A journalist for Le Figaro Magazine is arrested in Afghanistan but later turned over to Pakistani authorities, Le Figaro newspaper reports. A reporter for Paris Match, Michel Peyrard, is apparently still jailed in Afghanistan.
___ GERMANY: Germany provides 55 crew members on board NATO AWACS reconnaissance planes taking part in the alliance's first mission ever to protect American skies, but says it is awaiting a request for specific military help in the campaign against terrorism. The government announces the establishment of a new information center on biological and chemical threats following the anthrax cases in Florida. Acting on an Italian request, police in Munich arrest a Libyan suspected of links to Osama bin Laden's terrorist network, although the arrest is not directly connected to the Sept. 11 attacks.
___ GREECE: Provides the US-led forces with use of its airspace and a large U.S. air base in Souda Bay on the southern island of Crete. It has released its AWACS aircrews for duty in the United States, but has not yet pledged any forces for direct participation in the operation against Afghanistan. Authorities are also investigating bank accounts.
___ HUNGARY: Anti-aircraft rockets are moved to the vicinity of the Paks nuclear power facility. Peter Wolff, chairman of the Hungarian Association of Hotels, says that so far Hungary's five-star hotels have had a $5.6 million shortfall attributable to the Sept. 11 attacks.
___ ICELAND: Prime Minister David Oddsson, speaking after first strikes on Afghanistan, says his government "supports all action against countries who shelter terrorists." Opposition Alliance Party leader Ossur Skarphedinsson says he hopes innocent civilians will be spared, "but the attack was an inevitable response."
___ IRELAND: Police question three Libyans and an Algerian on suspicion of links to bin Laden's al-Qaida network, but release them without charges. Prime Minister Bertie Ahern says the Taliban government in Afghanistan should be toppled. Left-wing lawmakers protest Ahern's offer to let the U.S. Air Force use Irish airfields, saying it would infringe Ireland's traditional neutrality.
___ ITALY: Is contributing 300 men on board two vessels of NATO's permanent fleet in the eastern Mediterranean, and 49 Italian crew manning AWACS planes.
Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who calls the airstrikes an "act of justice," offers use of Italy's ports, airports and ground troops. He won bipartisan support for a resolution allowing military support, although some leftists broke with the center-left, furthering weakening solid parliamentary opposition to Berlusconi.
Berlusconi says he would reiterate his offer when he meets U.S. President George W. Bush in Washington on Monday, but says, "I hope and I think they won't ask for ground troops."
On Wednesday, Italian police arrest two Tunisians in northern Italy in a crackdown on alleged Islamic militants suspected of links to Osama bin Laden's terrorist network.
___ LIECHTENSTEIN: The principality has said it is giving "active and full cooperation" to the search for terrorist money, but so far has not announced the discovery of any accounts in its banking system. Liechtenstein announces it has hired a Swiss expert on money laundering to strengthen its protection against criminals.
___ NORWAY: NATO member contributed 15 crew to serve on NATO AWACs planes deployed to the United States. Security has been tightened at military bases, public and other buildings and airports. U.S. Embassy in Oslo closes for two days for unspecified security reasons.
___ PORTUGAL: Joint U.S.-Portuguese air base in Lajes on Portugal's mid-Atlantic Azores Islands has downgraded security alert to an intermediary level for the first time since Sept. 11. Two Portuguese airmen are serving on NATO AWACS dispatched to United States.
Government has lowered GDP growth for 2002 forecast from between 2.25 and 2.75 percent to between 1.75 and 2.25 percent. State-owned airline TAP expects number of passengers to drop between 5 and 10 percent in the final quarter this year compared to same period in 2000.
___ ROMANIA President Ion Iliescu says Sunday that Romania would consider itself a "de facto member of NATO" in the current international situation. U.S. planes involved in the air campaign in Afghanistan have used Romanian air space. A poll published Friday shows 51 percent of Romanians support the US military intervention in Afghanistan, while 44 percent oppose it.
___ RUSSIA: Defense Ministry denies media reports that it sent Russian troops to fight alongside the northern alliance in Afghanistan. Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov reiterates that participation of Russian military forces in Afghanistan would be impossible and warns it would be a mistake for outside powers to try to install a government in Afghanistan.
___ UKRAINE: Kiev strengthens its eastern borders with Russia to stop illegal migrants, expecting a flood of refugees from Afghanistan following U.S. strikes.
___ SWITZERLAND: Investigators have ordered banks to check their accounts for money possibly linked to Osama bin Laden, and a number of possible accounts have been flagged by the banks. So far no definite link has been established between Switzerland and bin Laden's operation beyond a visit of several hours by Mohamed Atta, a suspected leader of the hijacking teams in the Sept. 11 attacks, during a stopover between Miami and Madrid last July.
___ TURKEY: NATO's only Muslim member has opened its air space and bases to U.S. aircraft. Parliament has approved a bill allowing the government to contribute troops to the campaign. Officials have said Turkish soldiers are available to train fighters of the northern alliance, the main anti-Taliban force in Afghanistan.
On Friday, police detain some 100 people in anti-American protests following prayers in mosques in Istanbul and the central city of Konya.
AFRICA
BENIN: Government supports U.S. reprisal operations. Foreign Affairs Ministry "reiterates its condemnation of international terrorism and supports the U.S.' acts of legitimate self-defense." The foreign ministry also "reaffirms its availability to participate in any initiative to combat international terrorism."
___ BOTSWANA: Foreign Minister Mompati Merafhe says Botswana supports the airstrikes and expresses hope the operation will be carried out in accordance with the U.N. Charter and minimize the death of civilians. Merafhe says the attacks on the United States were an attack on humanity as a whole.
___ BURKINA FASO: President Blaise Comapore says he backs coalition against terrorism, but does not believe military response will cure it. Has not condemned U.S. strikes.
___ CAMEROON: Government "totally supports" America's bombardment of Afghanistan. Security around U.S. diplomatic compounds, main airports, beefed up.
___ CONGO: Government spokesman Kikaya Bin Karubi says Afghanistan strikes are "legitimate defense," but deplores "loss of human lives, whether they are victims of terrorism or innocent victims of bombings."
___ GHANA: Deputy Foreign Minister Idris Mustapha says, "We in Ghana maintain our support for any action that will bring to an end acts of terrorism in the world. Government is ready to participate in any international coalition to eradicate terrorism." Government declines to comment specifically on U.S.-led strikes.
___ KENYA: Declines in tourism and tea sales – Kenya's top two foreign currency earners – are expected as a direct result of the crisis. The tourist board expects fewer American tourists in the short term. The Tea Board of Kenya says that Afghanistan, which bought $25.6 million worth of tea from January to June and was the fourth leading buyer of Kenya's tea, had been absent from the export auction since the Sept. 11 attacks.
___ LIBERIA: President Charles Taylor offers his nation's airport facilities and airspace to the coalition. Taylor says: "The fight is just" and promises Liberia, founded by freed American slaves in 1847, "will remain on the side of good."
___ MALAWI: President Bakili Muluzi cautiously supports the attacks on Afghanistan. On a visit to London, he assures British Prime Minister Tony Blair of Malawi's support, but asks that civilian areas not be targeted.
___ MALI: Most citizens – 95 percent of the desert country are Muslims – are against the U.S. bombings, but no demonstrations are reported. Government says it "subscribes to the various actions taken in the international community to fight terrorism and neutralize the authors of terrorist acts."
___ MOZAMBIQUE: In a nationwide address after the air strikes against Afghanistan begin, President Joaquim Chissano says Mozambique would continue to work with the international community in the global struggle against terrorism. He also promises to take measures to ensure the country is not used to plan, organize or implement terrorist attacks.
___ NIGERIA: Police fire teargas Friday in the northern city of Kano to break up a protest by hundreds of Muslim youths decrying U.S.-led airstrikes on Afghanistan. Several cars are burnt and several people are injured. President Olusegun Obasanjo has publicly declared broad support for "concerted international efforts" to combat terrorism and warned Nigerians to be "vigilant" and report any suspicious persons or activities.
___ SENEGAL: President Abdoulaye Wade approves of the airstrikes and rejects foreign calls for jihad against the United States. Wade plans to host continentwide anti-terrorism conference in Senegal Oct. 17. to explore ways Africa can combat the problem. Senegal's population, which is 90 percent Muslim, largely does not support the attacks.
___ SIERRA LEONE: Backs U.S. actions. Presidential spokesman Septimus Kai Kai says Sierra Leone "supports every effort directed at eliminating terrorism and enhancing cooperation among governments and groups resolving conflicts." Authorities have stepped up security at airports.
___ SWAZILAND: Has promised to freeze the accounts of any people linked to terrorist activities, and to develop a system of monitoring financial transactions of people suspected of having links to terrorist activities in the kingdom. Security has been tightened at the Matsapha International Airport, where passengers are now subjected to a physical body search and luggage is double screened before boarding.
___ SOUTH AFRICA: Says it "recognizes the right" of the United States to bring justice to those responsible for the attacks on New York and Washington, but says those acts should be backed by hard evidence. The government expresses concern at the humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Afghanistan. About 3,000 anti-American protesters – mostly members of the Muslim community – break through police barricades Thursday and march to the U.S. Consulate in Cape Town to hand over a statement demanding an end to the airstrikes.
___ TANZANIA:
Police have set up a special anti-terrorism unit because of evidence international terrorism has found its way into Tanzania, Adadi Rajabu, director of criminal investigation, is quoted as telling the government-owned Daily News. "There is every need to be vigilant with terrorism activities because they know no boundary, political ideologies, religion or color," Rajabu said. In 1998, Tanzania was the site of one of the twin U.S. embassy bombings linked to bin Laden.
___ UGANDA: Uganda, which has suffered attacks from terrorists trained in Sudan and Afghanistan, supports the airstrikes but cautions that measures needed to be taken to protect civilians in Afghanistan. In light of previous attacks in Uganda, parliament begins discussing a bill last week aimed at beefing up its domestic efforts to deal with terrorism.
___ ZAMBIA: The government says response to New York and Washington attacks should be proportionate and well targeted and should not needlessly kill innocent people. It appeals to the international community to set up effective, quick-response mechanisms to prevent future terrorist acts. "Zambia will play its role – no matter how small – to contribute toward this global effort," acting Foreign Minister Vernon Mwaanga says Thursday night. Dr. Assabullah Mwale, spiritual leader of the Muslim community in Zambia, says the community declines to join the Taliban's call for a jihad because it is against Islamic law and Zambia is a peaceful nation.
AMERICAS
ARGENTINA: Argentina backs U.S.-led strikes against Afghanistan and offers unconditional support for war on terrorism. President Fernando De la Rua offers Argentine troops as part of any humanitarian effort.
___ BOLIVIA: President Jorge Quiroga promises that Bolivia "will fully cooperate with the United States, doing anything in its power to help fight this war against terrorism." Intelligence agents in Bolivia question a Pakistani man and his Bolivian wife after discovering airport plans and models of airplanes in the couple's rented apartment in La Paz.
___ BRAZIL: President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, one of the earliest and loudest supporters of the United States following the terrorist attacks, calls on the Organization of American States to invoke the Rio Treaty for collective self-defense but says his country won't send troops. Polls show nearly three out of four Brazilians oppose U.S. military strikes on Afghanistan.
___ CANADA: The government has announced a series of measures costing $165 million to tighten security at airports and along the U.S. border, and to prevent document fraud.
In a speech to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Prime Minister Jean Chretien says Canada is joining the U.S.-led military campaign to preserve freedom. Chretien, whose government is contributing six navy ships, six aircraft and 2,000 armed forces members, said the outcome of the battle against terrorism "will shape the 21st century in ways as profound as the epic battles of the century that just closed."
___ COLOMBIA: The government, fighting its own civil war with rebel groups on the U.S. terrorist list, expresses support for the U.S. attacks on Afghanistan. President Andres Pastrana call them "an action in defense of international security and liberty."
___ CUBA: Extends its solidarity to the American people and condemns the terrorist attacks on the United States. But President Fidel Castro opposes the military response because of effects on civilians. The day of the attacks, Cuba offers medical assistance to the American people, but makes no other offers to the United States, with which it has no diplomatic ties.
___ CHILE: Expresses "support and solidarity" with the United States, calls the strikes on Afghanistan "legitimate defense" and donates $30,000 in humanitarian aid to Afghan refugees. Security is reinforced throughout the country. On Sept. 13, an envelope containing a small amount of explosives is received at the U.S. Embassy; no one claims responsibility.
___ DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Authorities step up security in airports and add officers outside the U.S. and Israeli embassies. President Hipolito Mejia, asked what he thinks about the U.S. bombing in Afghanistan, says: "I support it."
___ ECUADOR: President Gustavo Noboa expresses "firm condemnation by the people and government of Ecuador of the demented terrorist attacks." Foreign Minister Heinz Moeller says Ecuador supports "any action taken to bring to justice those responsible."
___ EL SALVADOR: President Francisco Flores repeats backing for U.S. actions and urges "a global alliance" against terrorism. Interior Minister Francisco Bertrand says "drastic" security measures will continue at airports, borders. President says FBI will help El Salvador investigate Cubans living in the country to assure none are linked to terrorism.
___ GUATEMALA: President Alfonso Portillo says the United States is helping Guatemala control terrorism. The Guatemalan military says it could offer 30 soldiers as part of a Central American contingent for humanitarian work in the battle against terror.
___ HAITI: Government condemns the terrorist attacks but does not comment on the war. Culture Minister Guy Paul says Haitians are "outsiders and onlookers" in the conflict.
___ JAMAICA: Government supports military action in Afghanistan, with Foreign Minister Paul Robertson describing it as "necessary"
___ MEXICO: Despite domestic debate on how far Mexico should back the United States, President Vicente Fox "firmly supports" military action in Afghanistan. He calls the Sept. 11 hijackings "an attack against humanity" and against Mexican national interests. Mexico offers aid including intelligence and border security, but stops short of offering troops.
___ NICARAGUA: U.S. war on terror creeps into the local presidential campaign as the incumbent party accuses Sandinista challengers of links to terrorism during their government of the 1980s. U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher joins debate, expressing reservations about Sandinista history of "maintaining links with those who support terrorism."
___ PANAMA: Steps up security at Panama Canal in response to start of bombings in Afghanistan.
___ PARAGUAY: At the urging of U.S. authorities, Paraguay steps up controls along its borders with Brazil and Argentina, a thriving trade corridor home to a large Arab Muslim community. The area has been suspected in the past of being a haven for members of some Islamic fundamentalist groups.
___ PERU: President Alejandro Toledo pledges full support for U.S. military action in Afghanistan, saying the terrorism of Maoist Shining Path guerrillas in the 1980s and early 90s is "fresh in Peru's memory." "Any act of terrorism in Peru, Latin America or in the world will be rejected without ambiguity," he says.
___ URUGUAY: Uruguay backs U.S. military action in Afghanistan, with Foreign Secretary Didier Opertti saying: "The response has been in direct proportion to the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States."
___ VENEZUELA: Venezuela condemns "abominable" attacks, quickly guarantees oil supplies to the United States, increases security at oil installations and pledges aid for Afghan refugees. President Hugo Chavez repeatedly condemns terrorism, urges Washington to act cautiously, and after U.S. strikes worries about "dangers that war can bring."
AP-WS-10-14-01 1417EDT