Friday was declared a day of mourning throughout the European Union in commemoration of the victims of terrorist attacks Tuesday that destroyed the World Trade Center in New York and hit the Pentagon in Washington.
"The horrific terrorist attacks on the United States have shocked our citizens," said a joint declaration issued by the office of Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, whose country presides the union.
The statement, in the names of all EU heads of state and government, the presidents of the European Parliament and Commission and the High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, called on "all European citizens to observe, at noon (1000 GMT), a three-minute silence to express our sincere and deepest sympathy for the victims and their families."
It stressed that the EU must accelerate efforts to gird its own defenses, saying, "We shall make the European Security and Defense Policy operational as soon as possible. We will make every effort to strengthen our intelligence efforts against terrorism.
"Our citizens will not be intimidated. Our societies will continue to function undeterred," it said. "But today our thoughts are with...the American people."
The EU, it noted, had already "condemned the perpetrators, organizers and sponsors of these terrorist attacks in the strongest possible terms," and "would make every possible effort to ensure those responsible...are brought to justice."
It pledged the EU's complete solidarity and full cooperation to ensure justice is done.
"This assault on humanity struck at the heart of a close friend, a country with which the European Union is striving to build a better world," said the statement.
"But these terrible terrorist attacks were also directed against us all, against open, democratic, multicultural and tolerant societies," it said, adding, "Nothing can justify the utter disregard for ethical values and human rights.
"Global solidarity is at stake."
The declaration called on "all countries to redouble their efforts in the fight against terrorism," saying it was "essential for the security of our citizens and the stability of our societies.
"International organizations, and the United Nations in particular, must make this an absolute priority," it said, and "police and judicial authorities of all our countries must, in the coming days, intensify their efforts.
"It is not tolerable for any country to harbor terrorists."
The EU "must commit itself tirelessly to defend justice and democracy at a global level," said the statement, adding, "We shall continue to develop the Common Foreign and Security Policy with a view to ensuring that the union is genuinely capable of speaking out clearly and doing so with one voice” – BRUSSELS (AFP)
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