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In his message, Mr Putin praised King Abdullah II’s proposal to create a permanent international forum that would coordinate the efforts of governments, the media and religious and public organisations in the fight against terrorism and Islamic extremism.

Mr Putin also informed King Abdullah II on the processes underway in the Caucasus region, noting in particular that, “the situation in Chechnya is making stable progress towards normalisation. Economic and social recovery is underway and people’s cultural and spiritual lives are undergoing a revival. The Chechen parliamentary election set for November 27, 2005, will mark an important stage in stabilising the internal political situation in the republic. This election will be held on a multi-party basis and in complete accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation, the Republic of Chechnya, and international democratic standards.”

The President noted further that, “bandits and terrorists still hope to obstruct these positive changes and try to speculate on the population’s religious feelings. But the overwhelming majority of Chechnya’s Muslims feel indignation at the terrorists’ claims to be the defenders of Islam and at their attempts to justify their bloody crimes with references to Islamic values.”