This final statement from the meeting of G8 Ministers of Justice and Home Affairs from the meeting in Paris on 5 May will be further discussed at the Evian Summit in France on 1-3 June,
This final statement from the meeting of G8 Ministers of Justice and Home Affairs from the
meeting in Paris on 5 May will be further discussed at the Evian Summit in France on 1-3
June, see: Preparations for Evian protests
MEETING OF THE MINISTERS OF JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS
Paris – 5 May 2003
Presidents’ Summary
1. The G8 member States’ Ministers of Justice and Home Affairs plus the European
Commissioner in charge of Justice and Home Affairs met May 5, 2003 in Paris (France) to
review the progress made in the fight against terrorism and organised crime since their May
2002 meeting in Mont-Tremblant (Canada).
2. The Presidents have prepared the present summary of the discussions that took place
during this meeting.
Evaluation of the terrorist threat
3. Terrorism continues to present both a pervasive and global threat to our societies that we
have to respond to effectively and immediately. We have evaluated the terrorist threat in
light of the international situation and the latest developments in the fight against Al Qaida
and other terrorist organizations.
4. The threat from the Al Qaida network remains serious. In spite of the elimination of most
of its bases in Afghanistan, it seems that other camps have been reactivated in other areas in
the zone. The organisation’s abilities have been shaken by the recent arrests, but dormant
individuals and cells are always ready to act.
5. These serious blows to the terrorist networks were achieved through the exchange of
information between the specialised intelligence services and the strengthening of police
cooperation and mutual legal assistance. We are committed to continue and intensify this
cooperation in order to thwart
attempted terrorist attacks and to protect the targets most likely to be chosen by terrorists.
6. Up to now terrorists have used conventional weapons, although there is a risk that they
might resort to CBRN means (chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear). We must
address ways to anticipate and respond to such threats.
Security measures
7. The G8 countries have already taken protective, preventive and security measures to
protect critical infrastructures, foreign representatives, symbolic sites and high-risk
communities.
8. Each country is responsible for adopting the protection strategies and measures based on
the level of the threat and the nature of the installation concerned. We have insisted upon the
critical importance of close international cooperation on these questions.
Use of biometric technologies
9. We unanimously stressed the importance of developing biometric technologies and their
application in travel procedures and documents. We recognised that these new technologies
open up new possibilities in the fight against the use of fraudulent documents for criminal or
terrorist purposes. Consequently, they help strengthen transportation security, in accordance
with the objectives set out in 2002 by the G8 Leaders.
10. We underlined that the issues relating to application of this new technology should lead
us to work on developing a common framework and standards within the competent
international bodies. In this spirit, the G8 contributed to the International Civil Aviation
Organisation’s (ICAO) work in the form of a Declaration (G8 Roma and Lyon Groups
Statement for ICAO on Biometric Applications for International Travel). The declaration
identifies three guiding principles in establishing the standards: universality of standards to
ensure perfect technical interoperability, urgency in implementing these technologies and
technical reliability.
11. We have d