Commonwealth leaders have agreed at their summit in Australia to expel any member state that aided, financed or harboured terrorists.
In the first major announcement of their four-day meeting, the leaders said today they had agreed on a "terrorist action plan" under which members would also act to stop abuse of financial systems and freeze and confiscate the assets of terrorists.
They also called for the promotion of democracy, but showed no sign of taking any action against Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe over allegations that he is intimidating voters and rigging the result ahead of a March 9th-10th presidential election.
"The Commonwealth is not a police force," one southern African leader said, adding it would be premature even to consider what action to take until the elections were over.
British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair, who has been leading a campaign to suspend Zimbabwe from the 54-nation group, said the Commonwealth's credibility was on the line.
"If, after the elections in Zimbabwe, the Commonwealth observers report there was malpractice and intimidation...then it is essential we take action against Zimbabwe if Mugabe is still in power," he told reporters.
President Mugabe, who has led Zimbabwe for 22 years, faces a stern challenge from Mr Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change.
The European Union has already imposed sanctions on President Mugabe's inner circle and withdrawn its election observers after Zimbabwe refused to accredit their head. Washington has followed suit.
In 1999, the Commonwealth suspended Pakistan after a military coup by General Pervez Musharraf. Fiji has twice been suspended after racially-inspired coups in 1987 and 2000, but was welcomed back into the Commonwealth at the summit following elections last year.