mr president what are we to do with the former inmates of guantánamo bay
how do we strike the right balance between ensuring the security of eu citizens and finding a place to settle former inmates
firstly let me make it clear that i for one am not discussing inmates deemed to be dangerous but unsuitable for trial by the united states and please remember that such a sizeable group still exists
but even those cleared of charges and deemed to be no risk at all still in my opinion pose a risk
we have legitimate fears because according to the pentagon sixty-one former inmates cleared of all charges and subsequently released are now reported to be engaged in terrorist activities
one is the deputy head of al-qa ida in yemen and one has blown himself up
yesterday president obama stated on public television that he cannot be sure whether inmates cleared and released will not pose a security threat
can we be asked to take that risk in the eu
well i think we can be asked but we must have the right to decide whether that risk is acceptable to us or not
member states have shown different degrees of willingness to take former inmates
i stress that the decision to accept inmates must be the sovereign one of the member state
it cannot be forced upon a member state by the eu but neither can it be made in isolation
given the freedom of movement we enjoy in europe especially the border-free europe of the schengen zone member states decisions to allow guantánamo bay inmates to settle in their country has security implications not only for that member state but also for its neighbours
therefore i require and we require that such decisions are consulted with other eu members
