ALMATY, 5 June — A 16-nation Asian summit in Kazakhstan approved yesterday an anti-terrorism declaration which commits its signatories including India and Pakistan to not support separatist movements. The statement approved by the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-building Measures in Asia (CICA) denounced "all forms and manifestations of terrorism whenever, wherever or whoever may commit them."

The 16 signatories are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Egypt, India, Iran, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, the Palestinian Authority, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan.

Several of these nations are battling separatism, with Russia waging a war against insurgents in Chechnya, and China launching a major crackdown in its Muslim-majority westernmost region of Xinjiang, which is campaigning for an independent state of East Turkestan.

In addition to the terrorism declaration, the CICA members also signed a broader founding Almaty Act which had first been approved last September. The act also "condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and any support or acceptance of it and the failure to condemn it directly." A wide-ranging document which sets out the annual conference’s overall objectives, the act identifies "separatism as one of the main threats and challenges to security and stability" in the region. Its key clause on terrorism said member states "will not support any separatist movement on the territory of another member state."