BBC: Europe faces 'very real threat'

Europe faces 'very real threat'

BBC | August 16, 2006

UK Home Secretary John Reid has said Europe faced a "persistent and very real" threat from terrorism, after a meeting with EU counterparts in London.

But he said the presence of five other interior ministers and top EU officials symbolised Europe's determination to stand together and defend their values.

Finland's Kari Rajamaeki congratulated the UK on pre-empting an apparent plot to bomb airliners last week.

Twenty-four people are now in custody in the UK over the alleged plot.

Mr Reid said the European Union needed to develop its counter-terror policies in response to the evolving threat.

He said the talks had discussed practical measures in four areas:

* Tackling liquid explosives
* Co-ordination of transport security
* Exchange of intelligence
* The nature of European Islam

The world was faced by a form of "intolerant and violent totalitarianism", he added, which was subverting a religion, Islam, whose very name stood for peace.

Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini said he would be presenting concrete proposals on detection of liquid explosives to a forthcoming meeting of all EU interior ministers in Finland.

Veto move

The 7 July bombings in London last year pushed counter-terrorism up the EU agenda, and helped former Home Secretary Charles Clarke clinch a deal to force companies to retain telephone and e-mail data for use in investigations.

The European Commission is currently trying to persuade governments to give up their veto powers in the area of criminal justice, arguing that it will help the anti-terrorism effort.

The London meeting was attended by the Finnish interior minister, Kari Rajamaeki, whose country holds the EU presidency, and ministers from France, Germany, Portugal and Slovenia, which hold the presidency in 2007 and 2008.

A meeting of European aviation security and counter-terrorism experts which was due to have been held later in the week has been postponed.

The UK security threat level was raised to "critical" last week amid fears of the plot. On Monday it was downgraded to "severe", meaning an attack is now considered highly likely but not imminent.

Some EU governments followed the UK in preventing passengers carrying drinks or gels into aircraft cabins.