EU, US reach accord on Guantanamo Bay

Malta will not be obliged to take any detainees from Guantanamo Bay, after an agreement was reached by EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg on helping the US close the notorious camp for suspected terrorists in Cuba.

Spain, Portugal, France and Ireland declared they would take in former detainees while others, such as Malta, Austria, Denmark and the Czech Republic, will not host any.

The ministers agreed to allow member states to refuse free movement to former detainees hosted in the EU, barring them from moving on to other countries.

The final deal with the US was struck during a meeting of the General Affairs Council, attended by Foreign Affairs Minister Tonio Borg.

Following a lengthy debate, the ministers agreed on the final text of a declaration with the US welcoming the camp's closure and supporting the "commitment of the US to develop a new and more sustainable approach to security-related issues".

The declaration is intended to demonstrate the EU's backing for US President Barack Obama's decision to end a number of controversial policies used by his predecessor George W. Bush. Among these is Guantanamo Bay, the use of secret detention centres and the practice of extraordinary rendition - the transfer of suspected terrorists without the usual legal formalities to countries that practise torture.

"The EU and its member states wish to help the US turn the page," the declaration read. It also stressed an expectation of further changes in US counter-terrorism.

The declaration commits the US on a number of security-related issues including sharing of all available (confidential and otherwise) intelligence and information on former detainees that member states agree to accept.

According to the declaration, the US will consider contributing to the costs incurred by member states to take in ex-detainees on a case-by-case basis.

During a briefing after the agreement, Jonathan Faull, who heads the European Commission's justice, freedom and security department, said the declaration was "something quite significant" and represented a new partnership with the US on security issues.

Last week, EU home affairs ministers had addressed the security concerns of EU states that would not resettle detainees by agreeing on a method of exchanging information allowing members of the border-free Schengen zone to assess the risks posed by the detainees.

Some European countries have already taken in former detainees, including citizens or residents of those countries. These include the UK, which took 14 former detainees, France, which is hosting seven, Belgium, which has already taken two, and Germany, which has given a home to one. Albania and Sweden have also taken in former detainees.