We have all been shocked in recent days by the images and news pouring in from a bloodied Paris. The terrorism that has permeated that city and our daily lives left us stunned and feeling vulnerable, but we know that we can only meet this challenge by taking a strong stand on behalf of our values: democracy, freedom, equality and the joy of living.
The fact that terror strikes on the streets that we know must not allow us to forget those who are dying far away in lesser-known places. We are monitoring the latest events in Bamaki, Mali with apprehension, just as we offer our solidarity to Lebanon for the attacks of a few days ago and Russia, which lost so many victims in the plane recently brought down.
Various attacks over the past days have shaken the lives of Israeli civilians, knifed in their cities and targeted by snipers along motorways. We condemn those attacks against every logic of humanity and that threaten to further obstruct the path to peace. Israel too has a right to peace and security.
All that has happened must not inure us to the fact that each nation has the right to live in peace and security. The international community must strive to bring this right to bear everywhere through common strategic policy choices. Only in this way will the West – and Europe in particular – earn the necessary credibility to forcefully uphold its values of peace and democracy.
