EU to Share Intel With France After Paris Attacks – Czech Defense Minister

The European Union will assist French authorities by sharing intelligence, but France does not need any additional military force in the wake of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris, Czech Defense Minister Martin Stropnicky said Tuesday.

BRUSSELS (Sputnik) – The EU defense ministers meet on Tuesday in Brussels to discuss France’s first invocation of Article 42.7 of the Lisbon Treaty, obliging EU member states to help the country that experiences an armed aggression.

"[We will assist by] a closer cooperation as far as the exchange of information is concerned, classified information in particular, because it is very important to know more about preparations of terrorist actions. It is very seriously discussed. I think that it will be one of the questions that we will discuss today," Stropnicky told journalists before the meeting of the EU defense ministers.

The minister said that France did not need any additional military support, because it "has own capacities to cope with the situation however serious it is".

On November 13, about 130 people were killed, some 350 injured, 99 critically, in a series of terrorist attacks across Paris. The Islamic State jihadist group claimed responsibility for the killings.