“The Committee of Ministers has decided to step up its action to promote tolerance and to fight against radicalisation leading to terrorism”, highlighted Didier Reynders, Chairperson of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, while addressing the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe today.
The Minister for Foreign and European Affairs of Belgium underlined the relevance of a direct security threat to societies, emphasising the importance of the Convention on the Prevention on Terrorism with legally binding measures to deal with the menace of returning foreign terrorist fighters.
The strategy designed should not only rely on judicial instruments but also envisage strong tools for education. “The Council of Europe is in a privileged position to help us to do so”, added Reynders.
"The situation in Eastern Ukraine remains very worrying. It is urgent that all parties implement fully and faithfully the Minsk Memorandum and the follow-up protocol", mentioned the Belgian Deputy Prime Minister.
Finally, the Chairperson of the Committee of Ministers described the state of play in the implementation of the priorities and of the programme of the Belgian Chairmanship, focusing on social rights and on the protection of vulnerable people.