International cooperation

EU, Russia Need Joint Security System to Keep 'Islamic Extremism at Bay' - AfD

Europe and Russia can start cooperation by addressing common security challenges, in particular, by creating a joint structure of counterterrorism organizations to address the global threat of extremism, Gerold Otten, a member of the German Bundestag's defense committee from the Alternative for Germany party (AfD), told Sputnik on Friday.

"The first issue which comes to mind is keeping Islamic extremism at bay. This threat is common to both the European Union and Russia… One possible step in the direction of cooperation could be the establishment of a joint structure of anti-terrorist organizations, in order to combat extremism and crime," Otten suggested.

He added that Russia and the European Union did have a platform for tackling security threats jointly —the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. However, Otten found the frequency of the OSCE meetings insufficient to provide an appropriate response to he modern crises.