ABSTRACT
Since 9/11 terrorism has become a major foreign as well as domestic policy issue. The international dimension of terrorism is well known, and the European Security Strategy (ESS) identified terrorism as one of the main security threats facing the Union. Terrorists may plan an attack in one country, ensure financing from a second country, conduct the crime in a third country and seek refuge in a fourth. Mainly under US pressure, the EU has had to develop its own policies to tackle terrorism. Inevitably these have had an external dimension, as the EU has had to negotiate with international partners and seek their cooperation for counter-terrorist policies. In addition the EU has provided increasing technical assistance to third countries in an effort to tackle terrorism at source. The EU has much to offer the international community, from police and judicial cooperation to border management, from enhanced information exchange to data protection, from legislation to policy funding, from national to regional cooperation. Some 80 countries benefit from EU-financed assistance programmes. The EU is also active at the UN seeking to build consensus on tackling terrorism. It is also engaged in efforts to tackle the root causes of terrorism.
