EU efforts on counter-terrorism - Capacity-building in third countries

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Non-profit, Government & Organizations

4.8 • 13 Ratings

🗓️ 12 January 2018

⏱️ 7 minutes

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Summary

In the European Union (EU), responsibility for counter-terrorism lies primarily with Member States. However, the role of the EU itself in counter-terrorism has grown significantly in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks that have hit Europe in the post-'9/11' era. The cross-border aspects of the terrorist threat call for a coordinated EU approach. Moreover, the assumption that there is a connection between development and stability, as well as internal and external security, has come to shape the EU's actions beyond its own borders. In the context of terrorism, the EU has an extensive toolkit of human and financial resources that support third countries in managing or mitigating terrorist threats. A key element of EU action is capacity-building in partner countries, to ensure local ownership, a sustainable assistance model and the full use of local expertise for challenges that are geographically distinct.

Source: © European Union - EP

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to European Parliamentary Research Service podcast on capacity building as part of EU efforts on counter-terrorism.
0:13.0	Terrorism knows no boundaries. As a consequence, never before have external and internal security been so intertwined.
0:22.6	Based in these two premises, the European Union has developed an extensive toolkit of human and financial resources to get to the root of the problem and help third countries to better manage and mitigate terrorist threats.
0:33.6	Want to know more. Stay with us.
0:45.3	When terrorists brought down the Twin Towers in 2001, the world's security landscape changed forever. Suddenly, leaders in the US and around Europe realized that what happened
0:49.4	abroad could have a profound impact at home, blending forever the conventional boundaries
0:54.0	between internal
0:55.0	and external security.
0:56.0	In 2016, a total of 142 failed, foiled and completed attacks took place in eight EU member
1:03.5	states, claiming the lives of coincidentally 142 citizens.
1:08.5	But terrorism not only threatens our security, but also the fundamental values and
1:12.8	freedoms of our democratic societies. This is why, despite the primary responsibility in the fight
1:18.2	against terrorism lying within the member states, the role of the EU has grown over the years
1:22.8	and the need for a coordinated EU approach is now widely recognised. EU countries have also acknowledged the need to develop a multifaceted counter-terrorism strategy,
1:33.3	mixing soft and hard power and broadening the scope to include a whole new range of tools and actions.
1:38.3	Now, a key element of this new approach to security is capacity building in partner countries. But what does this mean?
1:45.7	The realisation that development and security are mutually reinforcing and dependent elements
1:50.9	shifted the focus from traditional state security to capacity building,
1:55.2	which is about empowering third countries to tackle their own security, governance and stability.
1:59.8	The belief is that long-term
2:01.3	engagement and governance, peace and capacity building will lead to long-term sustainable development
2:06.6	and help to create peaceful and resilient societies diminishing the security threat both within
	...

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