Soldiers on the streets is no effective response to terrorist threats

Yesterday I wrote about my concern to see inappropriate, excessive security measures being adopted as a follow-up to the dramatic events in France. Unfortunately, the politicians seem to prove me right. They have now decided to put something like 10,000 soldiers on the French streets. This increases the security paranoia, it sends the message that people should live in fear, and gives the military a role that it is not theirs, for which they are not prepared. Furthermore, it makes them an easy target for all kinds of crazies that hate military uniforms.

The politicians know that this is not the right approach but might think that the citizens appreciate this action. I am not even sure of that.

And let´s be clear. When there is a real problem – and the terrorist threat is real – the responsibility of the political leaders is to organise the right response. Not to engage in spectacular actions that have very little impact on the solution of the problem. 

After Charlie, many rays of hope

Impressive rally in Paris. Impressive popular demonstrations all over France. This should bring back hope and tolerance. And one should make sure that the security responses that will follow the Charlie drama are proportionate and unobtrusive.

Fighting Boko Haram is a priority

We should not lose sight of Boko Haram. They are a major threat to the populations of the region and to stability in Nigeria and the Lake Chad part of Africa. The government of Nigeria has no capacity to respond to the menace. We should be very clear about it. And engage the authorities in Abuja with an offer of international security assistance that makes sense and cannot be ignored. This has now become a matter of great urgency. Concerted multilateral action and the appropriate pressure on the national authorities of Nigeria should be made as soon as possible, even before the presidential elections of this coming February. Then, just after the elections – which by the way will be pretty messy –deployments should take place. The poor populations of remote North-eastern Nigeria need all help they can get. And this is not neo-colonialism. It´s solidarity and also the recognition that further destabilisation of Central Africa and the Sahel will have a negative impact well beyond the region. 

Security cooperation

In the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo drama, there will be a high-level meeting in Paris on Sunday on internal security in Europe. I have not seen its agenda. But I believe it will have to discuss two basic things: improve intelligence and expand the exchange of information among the different police services of the EU countries. This means, in different words, more resources for prevention and a more cooperative approach among States. Both seem quite obvious. But they have not been very easy to implement. And I am afraid they will continue to face the same type of challenges. 

Charlie Hebdo and our tolerance level

On this day, when barbarians attacked the weekly Charlie Hebdo, in the heart of the city of Paris, one should just say two things. First, to express sadness. And second, to say that this type of criminal actions aims at the core of our values and tries to destroy our tolerance, our acceptance of the difference. And that cannot be accepted. We certainly come out of this in pain but at the same time strengthened in our capacity to accept the difference. What we cannot accept is terrorism, extremism, ideas of centuries ago, or any dog of God. And we have to be prepared to fight them. There is no place in our society, in 2015, for any group of mad, hallucinated terrorists.  

Greece: they will decide and we will talk with them afterwards

It is unwise for the EU leaders to freely comment on the forthcoming elections in Greece. It sounds like outright interference in the domestic electoral process. The Greeks will decide, based on their own internal power dynamics. Then, and only after that, the rest of the EU will see what comes next. There will for sure a need for negotiations. And everyone knows that only reasonable people with sensible negotiating standpoints can achieve results. Therefore, I believe that both sides, the Greeks and the external partners, will negotiate with a key concern in mind: these are no times to rock the boat. These are times of great global uncertainty and judicious people in Europe understand the current trends and circumstances. It would be a serious mistake for all of us if moderation was put aside. Leadership, today, at the beginning of this New Year, is about avoiding a race and an acceleration towards more confrontations. 

Syria: failure and despair

Syria´s tragedy is spreading fast into the neighbouring countries, particularly in Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan. Chaos and human distress have reached new levels, as it is also the case regarding insecurity and instability. People are just desperate, after so many years of war. Those who can afford the fees are now paying large amounts to human traffickers to take them across the sea into Europe. Even at this time of the year, when the seas are rough and the weather threatening. This is no time for hazardous crossings but the anxiety is so high that people just try to sail through. Everything is better than staying behind.

Their sense of urgency is not matched, on our side, by anything similar. We seem to have accepted that there is no solution to the Syrian crisis. The Security Council cannot agree on any meaningful approach to the resolution of the crisis. Now, Russia is preparing a conference – another so-called high level meeting! It will take place in a couple of weeks but nobody knows what for. It is not even clear if the UN Special Envoy will be given any significant role in that meeting. It could be just another excuse for the lack of substantive action. But, as things stand, it´s OK to go for it. At least it will allow a number of voices, here and there, to recall that the Syrian crisis is a major failure of today´s world. 

Human displacements and conflict

The illegal migrations across the Mediterranean Sea towards Europe are a matter of great concern. For different reasons, including the risk of loss of life and the political impact the immigration has on the domestic politics of the EU, as they are a fertile ground for the radical right-wingers to propagate their extremist ideas. But one should be proportionate. The numbers are certainly big and growing. However, they are much smaller than the unbelievable numbers of refugees in Lebanon, Turkey or Jordan, just to mention those countries that border Syria and have received millions of displaced and desperate people. That is what should make us think twice. How can we help in the solution of conflicts and crises that are the mass producers of human suffering and large scale human displacements? 

Commitment and leadership

In today´s world, with the wide access to information that the citizens enjoy, the leaders can only convince and be accepted if they are deeply dedicated to the common good. 

The UN of the future

This year there will be a lot of ink invested on who should be the next Secretary-General of the UN. We will see many opinion pieces on the subject. My point is that the debate should be, above all, on the kind of UN we need to have in the future. The choice of its next leader would be then the second layer of the debate. In both cases, we have to be clear about what is possible and try to push the agenda as far as that.