Henri Kox, Minister of Internal Security;
Credit: MSI
On Friday 13 November 2020, Luxembourg's Minister of Internal Security, Henri Kox, participated in the EU Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council, held via videoconference.
Following the terrorist attacks in Paris, Dresden, Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, Nice and Vienna, among others, the German Presidency of the Council of the European Union decided to put on the agenda of Friday's JHA Council a political discussion on this subject. The aim was to take stock and further strengthen European cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
In this context, ministers observed that in recent years, the role of the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) in the fight against terrorism has been developed, particularly through its European counterterrorism centre, as well as the use of European databases and information systems. New technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) can also be used in the prevention and prosecution of terrorist crimes.
Minister Henri Kox specified that the challenge will remain to use the full potential of these technologies without making concessions concerning fundamental rights, especially in the field of encryption. He recalled that Luxembourg is in favour of a solution which does not call into question encryption per se, because the latter constitutes an essential element for the security of digital communications.
Minister Henri Kox added that the implementation of European legislation on the interoperability of databases is necessary to strengthen the functioning and preserve the security of the Schengen area while giving law enforcement authorities the means to effectively combat terrorism in all its forms. He said that additional efforts can still be made in terms of information exchange and cooperation between law enforcement agencies. The initiative of the German presidency of a European police partnership aims to go in this direction. This police cooperation is considered important in order to safeguard the full functioning of the Schengen area without internal border controls.
All the ministers firmly condemned all forms of terrorism and recent events have only strengthened the European will to fight this scourge.
Five years to the day after the Bataclan attacks and those near the Stade de France in Paris, the ministers spared a moment of thought for the victims of terrorism in recent years.
