By IPS Correspondents
BRUSSELS, Mar 25 2004 (IPS)

A rush of new EU proposals seek to link aid to the fight against terrorism. Inevitably, a group of leading non-governmental organisations have objected to the moves.

The EU proposals to fight terrorism risk “compromising the neutrality, impartiality and independence of humanitarian assistance,” leading civil rights groups said in a joint statement Wednesday.

The new proposals cited by BOND (British Overseas NGOs for Development), a group of about 250 NGOs, openly link aid programmes to the fight against terrorism.

The proposals emerged at a meeting of European Union (EU) foreign ministers called Monday to discuss measures to increase cooperation between police and intelligence services across the continent.

The foreign ministers warned partner countries that their relations with the economically powerful bloc will suffer if they fail to cooperate in the fight against terrorism.

The ministers endorsed a draft declaration that described counter-terrorism as “a key element of political dialogue” with other countries.

An EU official said “aid and trade could be affected if the fight against terrorism was considered insufficient.”

French foreign minister Dominic De Villepin said after the meeting that the “real answer to countering terrorism is to try and settle the different crises of the world. It is true in Iraq, it is true in the Middle East. If we don’t do that we will see a growing number of terrorist attacks.”

The declaration commits the 25 current and soon-to-be EU members to “act jointly in a spirit of solidarity if one…is the victim of a terrorist attack.” It includes a pledge to mobilise “all the instruments at their disposal, including military resources” to prevent attacks or assist one another in the aftermath of one..

The foreign ministers also approved stronger financial measures to freeze assets of suspected terrorist groups in Europe, and backed the creation of an EU anti-terrorism coordinator.

The measures reflect Europe’s alarm over the terrorist threat since the Madrid attacks.

Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen says the “comprehensive anti-terrorist package…ensuring the safety of citizens” would be presented to the summit of EU leaders. Ireland holds presidency of the EU for the first half of this year.

The EU has used its economic leverage already. It has suspended free trade talks with Iran until it says Tehran comes clean on its nuclear weapons programme. An aid and trade deal with Syria is dependent on Damascus signing up to an anti-terrorism clause.

But the development and humanitarian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are concerned that the new push to consolidate EU counter-terrorist strategy will undermine the bloc’s aid policy.

“Aid risks becoming a tool in the war on terror,” says Howard Mollett, policy analyst with BOND.

The EU proposals place an “overwhelming emphasis on threats and interests”, and so may “worsen the politicised use of aid in the war on terror,” BOND said in a statement.

“Coherence is now the buzz-word for EU development and foreign policy,” Mollett said. “But the boundaries between coherence, co-option and subordination are unclear. We see no guarantees that EU counter-terrorist strategy will be financed with additional resources and so not draw on development funds. Europe needs a credible development policy. Marginalising or instrumentalising aid is not the answer.”

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