Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has written to over 1,000 mosques in Britain urging them to do more to root out extremists - but the move has been branded divisive by some Muslim leaders.
In the letter, Mr Pickles stressed he was "proud" of the way Muslims in Britain had responded to the terror attacks in Paris, but there was "more work to do".
There are fears about the spread of terrorism after the Paris attacks that left 17 people dead and the arrest of more than two dozen people in anti-terror raids in Belgium, Germany and France.
EU foreign ministers, including Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, are meeting today in Brussels to discuss the terror threat in Europe. Building an alliance - including with Muslim countries - is high on the agenda.
Mr Hammond said: "The Muslim countries of the world are the ones who have suffered the greatest burden of terrorism and they will continue to be in the frontlines.
"We have to work closely with them to protect both those countries and the EU countries."
Mr Pickles insisted Whitehall could not combat jihadist ideology alone and Imams must explain to young people what it means to be British.
"You, as faith leaders, are in a unique position in our society. You have a precious opportunity, and an important responsibility: in explaining and demonstrating how faith in Islam can be part of British identity," he said in the letter.
"We believe together we have an opportunity to demonstrate the true nature of British Islam today.
"There is a need to lay out more clearly than ever before what being a British Muslim means today: proud of your faith and proud of your country.
"We know that acts of extremism are not representative of Islam; but we need to show what is."
Mr Pickles also sought to reassure the leaders that he had been in touch with police chiefs "to make sure they are providing the support that mosques need" - a concern that some imams expressed in recent discussions.
But the letter immediately drew criticism from some Islamic leaders.
Harun Khan, deputy secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said: "We will be writing to Mr Eric Pickles to ask that he clarifies his request to Muslims to 'explain and demonstrate how faith in Islam can be part of British identity'.
"Is Mr Pickles seriously suggesting, as do members of the far right, that Muslims and Islam are inherently apart from British society?"
But communities minister Lord Ahmad, who also signed the letter, rejected the criticism.
He told Sky News: "This is a positive initiative from the Government, it's not seeking to target any particular community.
"It's reaching out across the board, across the country, to say we want to tackle this issue of extremism."
The letter emerged as the Metropolitan Police announced it had increased security around its buildings and bolstered numbers of firearms officers available.
Home Secretary Theresa May also promised to up the Government's efforts to tackle the terrorist threat and a "chilling" rise in anti-Semitism.
Mr Hammond and his US counterpart John Kerry will also host talks in London on Thursday with ministers from around 20 countries, including Arab states, to discuss ways of tackling Islamic State.
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