92001E2662

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2662/01

by Mario Borghezio (NI) to the Council

(3 October 2001)

Subject: Threat of attacks on the European institutions

According to authoritative reports which have appeared in the UK press, a group of Islamic fundamentalist terrorists planned to carry out a murderous attack on the European Parliament during the part-session in February 2001, using sarin gas.

What urgent action does the Council intend to take in order to enable the security services of the European institutions which are among the international targets of fundamentalist terrorists to face up to the technological threat posed, by means of intelligence activities conducted with a view to preventing and countering terrorist attacks which might possibly be carried out with non-conventional weapons?

Would it not agree that it should also ask the EU governments to coordinate their intelligence services so as to enable them to monitor the presence on EU territory of existing or new terrorist networks and to determine whether those networks are being given any support and by whom, whether they are being funded through business or financial activities and whether any such funding is being our could be channelled through the banking system?

Joint answerto Written Questions E-2650/01, E-2662/01 and E-2672/01

(12 February 2002)

The Council invites the Honourable Member of the European Parliament to refer to the conclusions/action plan as adopted on the occasion of its extraordinary meeting (Justice and Home Affairs) on 20 September 2001 and the conclusions of the European Council (21 September 2001) in which numerous practical measures for combating and preventing terrorism are listed.

Coordination of the intelligence services of the Member States of the European Union to combat terrorism is mentioned in the following recently adopted texts:

Paragraph 2(3) of the plan of action approved by the extraordinary European Council meeting on 21 September 2001 states that: Member States will share with Europol, systematically and without delay, all useful data regarding terrorism. A specialist anti-terrorist team will be set up within Europol as soon as possible .

Paragraph 2 of the Declaration adopted by the Heads of State or Government at the informal meeting of the European Council in Ghent on 19 October 2001 lists amongst immediate priorities increased cooperation between the operational services responsible for combating terrorism: Europol, Eurojust, the intelligence services, police forces and judicial authorities. Referring to the threat of biological or chemical terrorist attacks, paragraph 5 of the Ghent Declaration stresses that the authorities will maintain increased vigilance and cooperation between the intelligence, police, civil protection and health services will be stepped up.

The Council also informs the Honourable Member of the European Parliament that the European Commission has recently introduced a proposal for a draft Framework Decision which aims, inter alia, to provide for a uniform definition and offence of terrorism in the Member States.

The aforementioned draft Framework Decision has been transmitted to the European Parliament for its Opinion and its adoption by the Council is highly urgent in the light of the conclusions of the 21 September 2001 Extraordinary European Council.

On a practical level, it is for each of the Union's institutions to take measures to ensure that its own security services adapt to meet current threats.