Brussels, 12/12/2005 (Agence Europe) - On 12 December, the General Affairs Council approved without debate the EU strategy on combating terrorism with a view to its adoption by the European Council on 15 and 16 December. The Council adopted the following conclusions:
“The Council reiterated the Union's commitment to a comprehensive approach to combating terrorism, while respecting human rights. It welcomed the progress made in delivering technical assistance to priority countries. Taking this assistance forward would be a key objective for the next six months. It adopted the strategy for the External Relations dimension of Justice and Home Affairs which also calls for closer engagement on counter-terrorism with key countries. The Council welcomed the continued political dialogue on counter-terrorism with international organisations and key partners, including the US and Russia, and the progress made in broadening this dialogue, including through the agreement on a Counter-Terrorism Code of Conduct at the Barcelona Summit on 27 November. The Council reiterated its welcome for the World Summit conclusions on terrorism and underlined the need to make every effort to reach agreement in the United Nations on the comprehensive convention on international terrorism during the sixtieth session of the General Assembly. The Council also looked forward to the development of a UN counter-terrorism strategy. The Council also welcomed agreement to the European Union Strategy and Action Plan for Combating Radicalisation and Recruitment to Terrorism, which provides a comprehensive framework to guide the Union's efforts to address these issues. The Council welcomed the CT Coordinator's six-monthly reports on implementation of the Counter-Terrorism Action Plan and Terrorist Finance Strategy and noted that the action flowing from these reports will be considered in the framework of the new revised Action Plan. The Council agreed the EU Counter-Terrorism Strategy which will now be forwarded to the European Council for adoption”.