APS : Monday, 16 July 2018
ALGIERS- European Union’s Counterterrorism Coordinator Gilles De Kerchove underlined, Monday in Algiers, Algeria’s extensive experience in the fight and prevention against terrorism.
De Kerchove made this statement to the press after the audience granted by Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel to senior EU officials, who held a meeting with their Algerian counterparts, Monday in Algiers, in preparation for the second session of Algeria-EU Strategic Dialogue on security issues and counterterrorism, to take place in Algiers in October.
“I am very pleased with today’s meeting in Algiers where, along with colleagues from the European Commission and the European External Action Service, we are preparing for the second session of Algeria-EU Strategic Dialogue, which will be co-chaired by Messahel and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini,” he said.
This dialogue is extremely important for the EU, given Algeria’s strategic and key role and its extensive experience in the fight and prevention against terrorism, he added.
The EU official said that his meeting with Messahel was an opportunity to assess bilateral relations, which are very strong in various fields, including cyber-security, prevention against radicalization, financing of terrorism and the exchange of analyses on regional situations, especially in the Sahel.
“I was very glad to meet again Messahel, who I have known for 8 years, and I am still extremely interested in his analyses, given his deep knowledge of the region and all the major security challenges,” he added.
The first session of the high-level strategic dialogue took place in Brussels, Belgium on 19 October 2017. It was co-chaired by Messahel and Mogherini.
