France and Belgium call for Europe-wide strategy against jihadists
- 8 years ago
France and Belgium have called for a Europe-wide effort in the fight against Islamist extremists and for more cooperation between EU member states.
The bilateral initiative comes after a period of strained relations following French allegations that its neighbour Belgium had overlooked jihadists preparing to attack the French capital last November.
Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said Europe must adapt.
“We find, as we have seen in Belgium as well as in France, that there is a new form of threat in Europe, a new form which lies hidden but which has also become more professional and learnt from its past failures.
So we need to adapt, so we have to anticipate better, to be more determined, and to cooperate against this new form of threat.”
French premier Manuel Valls wants to see a more rapid exchange of information between police forces on potential militants and an EU data base used to keep track on airline travellers.
“Europe must step up to the mark and show that
The bilateral initiative comes after a period of strained relations following French allegations that its neighbour Belgium had overlooked jihadists preparing to attack the French capital last November.
Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said Europe must adapt.
“We find, as we have seen in Belgium as well as in France, that there is a new form of threat in Europe, a new form which lies hidden but which has also become more professional and learnt from its past failures.
So we need to adapt, so we have to anticipate better, to be more determined, and to cooperate against this new form of threat.”
French premier Manuel Valls wants to see a more rapid exchange of information between police forces on potential militants and an EU data base used to keep track on airline travellers.
“Europe must step up to the mark and show that