5 December 2003 – Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas F. Ople today said that the Philippines strongly condemns the bomb attack on a commuter train near Chechnya that killed at least 36 people and wounded dozens of others.  The Secretary added that Russian and the Philippines will be co-hosting a counter-terrorism conference in Manila next year that would discuss transport security.

 “The Philippines strongly condemns this cowardly attack and offer our deepest sympathies to the Russian Government and to the families and victims of this attack,” Secretary Ople said.

 The Secretary said that resorting to terrorist attacks will not help solve any differences, saying that “acts of terrorism only serve to discredit any cause.”

The blast ripped through the train during the morning rush hour. Officials from Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry say the explosion appeared to be intended to cause as many casualties as possible.  The blast occurred in Russia's southern Stavropol region, aboard a train traveling to the town of Mineralnye Vody.

“This attack and an earlier attack show that transport facilities are prime  targets of terrorists.  Two months ago, twin blasts hit the same commuter railline, killing at least four people and injuring 32 others,” the Secretary said.

“There is clearly a need to share best practices and to discuss ways of cooperating to prevent terrorist attacks, particularly against critical transport facilities,”

 “Securing air, sea and land transport, including rail transport, from terrorist attacks is the main topic of the international conference we will be hosting with Russia early next year.  This importance conference will be held under the auspices of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) and will be an important pillar in international cooperation in fighting terrorism,” he added. END.