The EU’s Fight against International Terrorism

The CEPS policy brief, ‘The EU’s Fight against International Terrorism Security Problems, Insecure Solutions’ looks at the European Union’s response to the terrorist threat in the light of the bombings in London of 7 July 2005. It asks whether these policies do indeed address the correct issues and whether they are in compliance with fundamental community principles of human rights, civil liberties and the rule of law.  
The paper is written by Sergio Carrera and Thierry Balzac of the Centre for European Policy Studies.

The EU’s Fight against International Terrorism Security Problems, Insecure Solutions

CEPS Policy Brief, July 2005

Introduction

The investigations on the London attacks of 7 July 2005 have yet to clarify the intricate storyline of the bombings. Yet, the European Union has already set about tightening up its fight against international terrorism through policies that, unfortunately, compound the difficulty of addressing the challenge. The problems arise partly because the policies put forward do not match the diagnosis nor do they fully comply with the principles of legitimacy, proportionality and efficiency. In addition, it is unclear how these Community measures will minimise the lack of trust among member states, which has put the brakes on the implementation of instruments adopted after the Madrid attacks. This relates to the vexed question of the extent to which intergovernmental initiatives such as the Prüm Treaty are compatible with a credible EU policy in the area of terrorism.

This Policy Brief proceeds in two sections: First, we critically examine the main EU measures and legislative initiatives intending to fight what has been qualified as ‘terrorism’ following the Declaration on the EU Response to the London Bombings,  as  adopted by the Council on Wednesday, 13 July 2005. Second, we investigate how, if the freedom and justice dimensions are not set at the centre of EU policies developing an Area of Freedom, Security and Justice, human rights and civil liberties can be endangered and finally lost to the exceptional security demands.

Please click here to read the full document.