The EU and counter-terrorism: ETIAS and other measures

The European Union, together with Member States, are constantly developing anti-terrorism policies to better protect EU citizens, residents, and visitors.

This article looks at the EU’s counter-terrorism strategy and the tools at its disposal to help prevent future terrorist activity.

PREVENT, PROTECT, PURSUE, RESPOND

The EU’s Counter-Terrorism Strategy, developed in 2005, is built around 4 pillars: prevent, protect, pursue, and respond.

Prevent: stop recruitment and radicalisation. Recent developments include a focus on the use of social media and the impact of foreign fighters.

Protect: making external borders more secure and reducing vulnerability to attacks.

Pursue: preventing terrorists from plotting and preparing attacks (for example by preventing money laundering and terrorist financing) and bringing terrorists to justice.

Respond: minimise the impact of a terrorist attack by dealing with the aftermath including providing support for victims.

International cooperation is key to an effective counter-terrorism strategy. The EU works closely with the US and other third countries on matters of security as well as organisations such as the Global Terrorism Forum, the League of Arab States, and the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation.

HOW THE EU FIGHTS TERRORISM IN EUROPE

Terrorism is not new, it has existed in some form for thousands of years. Terrorists attack Europe to further their cause through the use of violence, while Islamic terrorist attacks in Europe specifically are motivated by religious extremism.

As the methods used by terrorist groups, in particular the Islamic State, change, how the EU responds and works to prevent such activity must also evolve.

Some of the most important developments in recent years have been:

Looking to the future, Europe’s new visa waiver scheme will be launched. ETIAS will help fight terrorism in Europe by strengthening external Schengen borders.

Information about these key tools can be found below.

THE EUROPEAN COUNTER TERRORISM CENTRE

One of the EU’s most powerful tools in its fight against terrorism is the European Counter Terrorism Centre. The ECTC was established by Europol in 2016 in response to the changing strategies of Islamic State.

As Europe’s central anti-terrorism operations centre, the ECTC plays a key role in keeping the region safe.

The aims of the ECTC cover all 4 pillars since the organisation gathers expertise from across Europe in order to:

The ECTC works closely with the European Cybercrime Centre and the European Migrant Smuggling Centre to achieve these goals.

OPERATIONAL SUPPORT FOR MEMBER STATES

EU Member States can request the support of the ECTC when investigating terrorist attacks. Existing Europol data is cross-checked against operational data to quickly identify relevant financial leads and other key information.

Member States can also count on various ECTC teams in the event of a terrorist attack.

ECTC EXPERT TEAMS

The European Counter Terrorism Centre brings together experts from across Europe to analyse information from all Member States. By gathering law enforcement information in this way, the ECTC can establish an essential, European-wide view on preventing terrorism.

THE EU TERRORIST LIST

Since 2002, the EU has maintained a list of individuals, groups and entities involved in terrorist activity and therefore subject to restrictive measures. including the freezing of funds and financial assets by the EU.

The list is reviewed and updated every 6 months to ensure all the latest information is included. Member States can request for persons, groups, or entities to be added to the list, this proposal is assessed by the Council before a decision is made.

PASSENGER NAME RECORD AND SECURITY

The European Parliament and Council adopted a directive on the use of Passenger Name Record (PNR) on April 27th, 2016.

PNR is the information airlines collect about passengers during the reservation and check-in processes including the flight itinerary, contact details, and payment method. Passenger name records can be very useful to law enforcement agencies.

By 2018, all Member States were required to have established Passenger Information Units (PIU). These units are responsible for collecting data from airlines and comparing it against security databases with the aim of identifying and preventing terrorism or other serious crimes.

The PUIs are also required to pass on information to Europol and the PUIs of other Member States when necessary.

ETIAS AND ITS ROLE IN COUNTERACTING TERRORISM

Looking to the future, Europe’s new visa waiver scheme, ETIAS, will be launched. Together with the Entry-Exit System, ETIAS will help fight terrorism in Europe by strengthening external Schengen borders.

Here are some of the areas in which the ETIAS and the EES will contribute to improved security across the European Union.

INFORMATION ABOUT TERRORIST ACTIVITY ON THE ETIAS APPLICATION FORM

When filling out the ETIAS application form, travellers need to state whether they have been convicted of any terrorist offences in the last 20 years. If so, they must provide the date and country.

This will help detect and prevent terrorist threats from reaching European countries.

ETIAS WATCHLIST TO IDENTIFY SUSPECTED TERRORISTS

The ETIAS watchlist contains information about people who are suspected of having committed terrorist offences or when someone is considered likely to take part in terrorist activity.

ETIAS applications are checked against the ETIAS watchlist. If the applicant is on the Watchlist, the relevant steps can be taken.

TIMELINE OF COUNTER-TERRORISM MEASURES IN EUROPE

This timeline shows some of the key measures taken by the EU and Member States over the last 8 years.

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

The EU prioritizes the safety of its citizens and will continue working hard to prevent terrorist activity on European soil.