European Union (EU) Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini announced on Thursday that the European Commission (EC) has no knowledge of CIA secret prisons in Europe.

Frattini made the written statement after the Washington Post reported the alleged existence of CIA secret prisons detaining terrorist suspects in some EU member states and candidate countries.

"I have read the press articles and confirm that for the time being the (European) Commission has no available information related to the issue at stake," said Frattini.

"It is therefore not appropriate for me to comment on those articles," the commissioner added.

Frattini noted that the EU is founded on the principles of liberty, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law.

"Furthermore, all EU member states are bound by their relevant international legal obligations, in particular those deriving from the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and the Convention against Torture," he said.

Frattini said he encouraged EU member states and candidate countries to "take the necessary steps to look into this matter when appropriate."

On Wednesday, the Washington Post and a human rights organization broke the story of secret prisons of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), indicating that northeast Poland and the Romanian Black Sea coast are likely sites.

Source: Xinhua