The European Union Foreign Ministers have agreed to launch anti-terror "projects" with Muslim nations and improve Arabic skills in the framework of a counter-terrorism strategy in response to the recent bloody attacks in Paris.
The Ministers agreed to consider a range of measures designed to beef up security in the EU. These measures will be sub mitted for approval to the EU leaders at a special summit meeting on February idedicated to fighting terrorism.’’We took a decision within the Foreign Affairs Council to coordinate in a much more active way than it has been the case so far," said EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini in a press conference after Monday’s ministerial meeting.
"First of all, with an input to share information, intelligence information, not only within the European Union, but also with other countries around us, starting from the Mediterranean and the Arab world, starting from Turkey, Egypt, the Gulf countries, North Africa, but also looking more to Africa and Asia at a certain time," she said.
So far many EU states have been reluctant to open up their intelligence networks to anyone except their most trusted allies for fear of harmful leaks, let alone with the Arab world.
Efforts to push through a system for exchanging air passenger information which many states say would help track suspected terrorists have also been held up by a sceptical European Parliament. Mogherini said the European Parliament would be asked to work on legislation covering the sharing of airline passenger data.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said the Paris attacks had "changed Europe and the world", calling for "possibly increased exchanges with Muslim countries."
His British counterpart Philip Hammond made the same point and pressed the need for progress on the passenger data system.
The EU also decided to have ‘’security attachés’’ in the European Union delegations in all relevant countries. ‘’This means regular contact among professionals on our side and on the country that is hosting the delegation''''s side to develop cooperation on security issues and counter-terrorist issue’’, Mogherini said.
The EU foreign policy chief, who before joining the ministers met Monday with the Arab League Secretary General Nabil Elaraby, also explained that the EU decided to ‘’improve our communication with Arabic speaking populations, be it in the European Union and with the larger Arab communities in the world.’’ ‘’I think we need to improve our capacity to speak Arabic, read Arabic, explain to the Arabic-speaking population our policies and also listen to the messages that are coming from the Arab world,’’ she said.
“We need to tackle the narrative saying that we have a double standard, that we only care about victims in Europe,’’ she added, stressing that ‘’this is not correct. We know very well that the first victims of terrorism and terrorist acts are Muslims and Arab countries.’’
‘’We need to work on developing a dialogue and an alliance of civilizations and avoid any kind of perception of a clash.’’
‘’There is a confusion in the media between immigration and terrorism. Muslims are the victim of terrorism in the first place. Terrorism is blind and doesn’t make a difference between Muslims and non-Muslims,’’ said Khalid Hajji, an official from the European Council of Ulemas from Morocco, at a debate on ''''''''Terrorist threats on European soil'''''''' hosted Monday in the European Parliament by Dutch MEP Bastiaan Belder, from the European Conservatives and Reformists group.
‘’It is our duty to fight together. Terrorism is not Islamic, we need to unite our efforts and not stigmatize each others,’’ he said at the event also attended by Jewish representatives. ‘’The objective of terrorism is to divide us so we must remain united and act together to ensure a better future for Europe,’’ said Rabbi Avi Tawil, Director of the European Jewish Community Centre (EJCC), emphasizing the need of dialogue with the Muslim community.
MEP Belder mentioned that in the European Parliament he had several times questioned former EU foreign policy Ashton on the issue of terrorism ‘’but I never received an answer.’’ I hope that this will change with her successor.’’