EU experts to examine air cargo security

(BRUSSELS) - European bomb detection experts will meet Friday to examine whether Europe needs to step up air cargo security measures following parcel bomb plots in Greece and Yemen, an official said.

"The terrorist threat is still here," Michele Cercone, European Commission spokesman for home affairs, told a news briefing. "We must remain active and vigilant at the level of (EU) member states and at the European level."

The European Union is working closely with international allies on the issue, including the United States, Canada and Australia, he said.

The EU's Belgian presidency and the commission called the meeting of experts on the detection of explosives and scanning of cargo to "evaluate the response to the threats" that emerged in recent days, Cercone said.

The spokesman for European home affairs commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem stressed that the meeting was aimed at taking stock of the situation and that no proposals had been put on the table to change the rules for the moment.

Security rules at the European level apply solely to parcels that depart from EU member states, he said, adding that the EU has some of the world's "strictest" measures.

"To my knowledge there are no proposals to block mail from third countries at this stage," Cercone said.

German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said EU interior ministers would discuss the coordination of security measures at the European level during a regular meeting on Monday and Tuesday.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel called on Wednesday for better freight security coordination after a parcel bomb from Greece was seized at her office and two US-bound parcel bombs were sent to the US from Yemen.

Several countries have banned air freight from Yemen, but Germany went a step further by barring passenger flights from the Middle Eastern country.

Greece announced Tuesday a two-day a ban on all international mail following a series of parcel bombs addressed to foreign targets, including French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The plot in Greece followed the discovery in Dubai and Britain last week of two parcels addressed to synagogues in Chicago and containing the lethal explosive PETN hidden in ink toner cartridges.