MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to the commission, although the responsibility for addressing violent radicalization which can lead to terrorism lies with EU member states, it recognizes the need to aid the member states by setting out a number of initiatives "across several policy areas, from promoting inclusive education and common values, to tackling extremist propaganda online and radicalisation in prisons."
"Recent terrorist attacks have shown how some young Europeans have fallen prey to an ideology of death and destruction, breaking away from their own families and friends and turning against their own societies. This calls for a determined response by society as a whole, to prevent radicalisation and strengthen the ties that bind us together. The EU should help wherever it can," Commission First Vice-President Frans Timmermans said in a press release published on the commission's website.
Some 4,000 EU nationals are estimated to have joined terrorist organizations in countries experiencing conflict such as Syria and Iraq to date. In addition, the majority of terrorists behind the recent terrorist atrocities in the bloc were European citizens.
