Defence Online

UK and Germany reaffirm relationship

Homeland September 23, 2016

The Home Secretary, The Rt Hon Amber Rudd, and the Interior Minister of Germany, Dr. Thomas de Maizière, met in Berlin on 22nd September 2016 to discuss counter terrorism, security and migration.

This was the first meeting between the two following the Home Secretary’s appointment and the opportunity was taken to reaffirm the relationship with Germany and to further develop the close partnership between the countries. A number of issues were addressed during the meeting; with the shared threat of terrorism and extremism high on the agenda, as well as how to address the challenges posed by migratory flows to Europe.

In a Joint Statement the governments of UK and Germany have agreed to:

• share information and work closely together on investigations
• deepen collaboration on countering radicalisation including through further exchanges of good practice and experience between experts
• support better regulation and control of the acquisition and possession of firearms within Europe, including by adopting as soon as possible the revised Weapons Directive and by tackling weapons smuggling through the Balkans
• continue to work closely to counter any potential threats to maritime and aviation security
• prioritise information sharing between all EU member states, in order better to meet emerging threats. This means ensuring that appropriate information exchange can take place between EU and international databases, as well as the use and implementation of existing tools and capabilities
• call for and support all member states to implement the EU directive on the use of Passenger Name Records without delay and include, as agreed, charter flights and intra-European flights
• call for the reinforcement of external borders through enhanced security measures, systematic use of databases and well-trained personnel
• call on those who have not yet signed and ratified the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime to do so as soon as possible
• In line with continued commitment to effective security cooperation, a fingerprint exchange pilot scheme between the UK and Germany is being explored, building on the DNA exchange pilot conducted in 2015.

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Amber Rudd Counter terrorism cyber crime cyber security Europe Germany terrorism UK

Post written by: Vicky Maggiani

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