"We have pursued policies of immigration at a rate that has made it frankly impossible for many new communities to integrate and for that I think we have to hold our hands up. Perhaps worst of all we have been guilty of weakness – lack of courage – of lack of assertion of who we are as people," Nigel Farage said during a debate in the European Parliament, as quoted by the Independent.
The UKIP leader insisted that "actually our [Western] political decisions have led to much of what has happened" recently in Paris. The politician pointed to the fact that the EU foreign policy in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria have resulted in "very deep resentments" among Muslims living in European states.
"We've turned a blind eye within many of our minority communities to practices that would not be tolerated in the rest of the population. Indeed, we've allowed preachers of hate to go around saying things that are totally unacceptable," he said as quoted by the Independent.
The politician urged his counterparts to be far more courageous and brave while defending a Judeo-Christian culture.
"We must embrace the vast majority of Muslims who themselves are horrified with the civil war that is going on within Islam, but unless we are prepared to admit our own culpability in much of what has happened, we are not going to be able to find solutions," he said.
Marine Le Pen, leader of France's nationalist Front National (FN), also slammed the EU policies, during her speech in the European Parliament.
"Have not austerity economic policies destroyed our capacity to respond, disarmed our police, our intelligence services and our army? Let nations defend themselves," Marine Le Pen stated as quoted by the BBC.
It is worth mentioning that Mr. Farage's stance has already met with harsh criticism from his British political opponents, claiming that the UKIP leader was trying to gain political scores while linking the hideous massacre to multiculturalism.
"Nigel Farage's politics of blame has no place in modern, diverse and tolerant Britain," said Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Tim Farron, as cited by the BBC.
On January 7, 2015 terrorist attacked the headquarters of Charlie Hebdo magazine, killing 12 people and injuring 11 others. The perpetrators were eliminated during a large-scale manhunt, launched by French security forces. On January 11, a nationwide march against extremism brought together over three million people in France. Regardless of threats voiced by some al-Qaeda members, the magazine vowed to continue releasing cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
