Brussels, 13/01/2005 (Agence Europe) - The American Secretary for Homeland Security, Tom Ridge, defended the US anti-terrorism policy in Brussels on Thursday, explaining that being the "primary target" justified their action, and called for the understanding of all who are sceptical or downright opposed to this policy.
"Every day it is clear that Al Qaida and Bin Laden see the United States as their primary target (…). We recognise that citizens of States, many of which are our strong allies, have different opinions" on the war in Iraq or treating terrorists as soldiers, but "we hope for some sympathy and understanding that we continue to be the primary target of terrorists", Mr Ridge told journalists at the end of his speech to the European Policy Centre (EPC) on Thursday morning.
Most questions put by members of the public after the speech by the Secretary for Homeland Security reflected opinion polls carried out in Europe, in that they were highly critical of elements like the status of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, the refusal of the United States to sign up to the International Criminal Court (ICC), or respect for civil liberties. Tom Ridge, who is soon to leave his post, repeated that the American administration does not see the ICC as "appropriately placed" to judge American "soldiers", that the Guantanamo prisoners can appeal, and that the United States is just as committed to the protection of privacy as Europe.
Can the aid provided to the victims of the tsunami help to improve the image of the United States and of the West in general? "If there are [such] consequences in the long term, they will be most welcome", but "this is not the aim". The short-term objective is to help populations hit by the tsunami, he declared.
Having defended the Bush administration's policy, the Secretary for Homeland Security spoke at length about the importance of international cooperation. "We cannot defeat terrorism unless there is really an integration of nations", he stressed several times, emphasising the need for a "global response" to a global threat.
Ridge welcomed developments in cooperation between the United States and the European Union since 11 September, with particular reference to the agreement on containers, in which the European Union agreed last year to allow American checks on containers leaving European ports for the US, and the agreement on recording data on airline passengers.
Stressing that this is a sign of willingness to boost transatlantic cooperation, Ridge confirmed the appointment of a high-level official in the Department of Homeland Security to the European Union as of 1 April. The appointment had originally been announced for the end of last year, at the EU-US troika which brought together Attorney General John Ashcroft and the justice ministers of the 25 EU Member States in Scheveningen, Netherlands, at the end of September.
One of the main areas for future cooperation will be that of biometric identification, declared Tom Ridge, stressing the need to develop common standards worldwide for compatible systems. The US are carrying out a pilot project involving volunteers who present no risk, and who can have their digital fingerprints and an iris scan registered to facilitate controls carried out in airports, said Ridge, adding that during his visit to Amsterdam on Thursday afternoon, he would launch a similar project at Schipol International Airport, together with the Dutch authorities.
Mr Ridge's only official meeting in Brussels was with the Commissioner for the Customs Union, Laszlo Kovacs, during which both simply paid tribute to the smooth running of the agreement on containers, and expressed their wishes for the excellent cooperation to continue with Mr Ridge's successor, said the Commissioner's spokesperson.