LONDON, July 20: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and President Nikolai Sarkozy of France have announced plans to set up a joint working group to exchange information that could help combat terror.

Mr Brown and President Sarkozy were speaking during a press conference in Paris.

A 10 Downing Street press release issued here on Friday afternoon said Mr Brown spoke about “the common challenge we face on terrorism and security”.

He said: “We are setting up a joint working party so that we can exchange information on a regular basis and we can work together to deal with the causes and the consequences of terrorism and the threats to security in both our countries.

“I believe that this is one of the great challenges that we will face not just for the next few years but for decades ahead and it is incredibly important that the two great countries of France and Britain share our common experiences and work together to deal with this huge issue.”

The group will meet quarterly.

Gordon Brown also said that Britain and France will work together to try to resolve the “great humanitarian disaster of our generation”.

The two leaders said that during their earlier conversation they had discussed how the situation in the area could be tackled. Mr Brown said that they had come up with a “plan of action” for bringing peace and prosperity to the region.

First, they will both work towards a United Nations resolution to bring an African Union and UN force into the region as quickly as possible.

Foreign ministers from both France and Britain will then visit the area to review the situation at first hand.

They will insist on an immediate ceasefire and cessation of violence and, once that is in place, will be prepared to provide significant investment to enable economic recovery and reconstruction in Darfur.

Mr Brown also said that following the passing of a UN resolution, he and Mr Sarkozy would visit the area themselves.