My name is Michele Cornings, I'm the president of Eurojust and Eurojust is
fighting organized crime and terrorism in the European Union, not only focusing
on the European Union but of course liaising with other regions, other
countries heavily affected by those criminal activities or terrorist actions.
Well we have to join the forces, for sure it's good to exchange and share
information, intelligence, police information. What we do is to connect
these informations with concrete facts, concrete criminals and terrorists and
ensure that these terrorists and criminals are being taken in courts to
justice and that they are convicted. We have to deter terrorists, we have to
deter criminals and last but at least we have to ensure that their revenues, their
motivation is taken away to also proceed to confiscation. So it's a whole set of
activity. What we do is obeying and obeying to the rule of law and third
trial and ensuring that we connect the dots, that we have good cooperation within
the EU, that we ensure judicial cooperation and coordination and that's built on
trust. So we have built trust at Eurojust since the last several years. We have
joined into that effort at a lot of occasions the Turkish authorities in fighting crime and we will
do so even this month in the frame of terrorism. So this is an ongoing process. I'm a true
believer of joining the forces and we do not only talk about this but we also do it in
practice and in concreto.
I think that dialogue is the answer and we should get engaged as soon as possible in
dialogue at a preventive stage in schools, in the homes and really talk with the new
generations. This is the hope for tomorrow, the future of tomorrow and if that doesn't
help follow up on what's happening. Preventing those youngsters to go to the war zones and the
conflict zones and if they come back really have a clear eye on them and ensure that those
hardcores who come back with terrorist intentions are being taken care of again with dialogue,
ensuring that they have a future that we can help them. So dialogue is the answer and for
those really lost, I think that convictions and clear signals are the answer and that's what
we're working on. We have to continue to be hopeful for a better future otherwise we are lost.
Trust is vital, trust is to be established and it takes years, a few seconds to destroy it and
an eternity to rebuild it. We cannot allow ourselves to lose trust.