MIDEAST-CRISIS/SPAIN ISLAMIC STATE Spain's FM says IS like no other armed group, Venezuela's remarks against PM Rajoy unacceptable

Record ID: 145924

  • Title: MIDEAST-CRISIS/SPAIN ISLAMIC STATE Spain's FM says IS like no other armed group, Venezuela's remarks against PM Rajoy unacceptable
  • Date: 28th July 2015
  • Summary: MADRID, SPAIN (JULY 28, 2015) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF SPANISH FOREIGN MINISTER JOSE MANUEL GARCIA-MARGALLO ARRIVING FOR NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) SPANISH FOREIGN MINISTER, JOSE MANUEL GARCIA-MARGALLO, SAYING ON ISLAMIC STATE: "It's a terrorist group like no other in history. It's a terrorist movement that appeals, resorts to violence in order to instate an extreme
  • Embargoed: 12th August 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Spain
  • Country: Spain
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA3GQM08J55OLL90TST02HKI4ER
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Spain's foreign minister on Tuesday (July 28) described Islamic State as an extreme group unlike any other, whose violent tactics left no space for negotiation.
    "It's a terrorist group like no other in history. It's a terrorist movement that appeals, resorts to violence in order to instate an extreme vision of Islam which has little to do with the peaceful views of most religions," Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said at the closing news conference of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) meeting on "Stemming the flow of Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTF)" in Madrid.
    "They resort to the most repugnant tactics and procedures that we have ever seen. Therefore there is no space for negotiation with totalitarian jihadist groups," the foreign minister added.
    The CTC estimates 25,000 to 30,000 foreign fighters have joined Islamic State as a result of the conflict in Syria.
    The meeting on combatting the phenomenon was attended by representatives from seventy countries over two days. 16 ministers were present on Tuesday, including from Turkey, Iraq, Nigeria and Mali.
    Participants concluded that the response time in dealing with foreign fighters had to be quicker and more fluid and there had to be an integrated approach that included civil society, the private sector and social media.
    UN Secretary Ban Ki Moon, who addressed the meeting on a live link from New York, said he intended to present a plan of action to prevent violent extremism to the general assembly later this year.
    At Tuesday's news conference Margallo also commented on the ongoing diplomatic spat between Spain and Venezuela after the Venezuelan ambassador was summoned on Monday (July 27) over comments made by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro about Spain's prime minister on Saturday (July 25).
    Maduro called Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy a "hitman" in reference to the way he had handled the Greek crisis.
    Margallo described the comments as "totally insulting and unacceptable".
    "That sort of language does not contribute to improving relations between Spain and Venezuela and it is language I regret, especially because the Venezuelan people do not deserve to have leaders that refer to other countries in these terms," he said.
    It's not the first time Maduro has attacked Rajoy. In the past he has called him a "racist" and has accused him of taking steps against Venezuela.
    Spain summoned the Venezuelan ambassador and recalled the Spanish ambassador to Venezuela over a similar incident earlier this year.
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