20 years after 9/11: achievements and challenges of EU counter-terrorism efforts
Live show on the fight against terrorism
Terrorism threatens the democratic values of our societies and the rights and freedoms of European citizens. Fighting terrorism is a top priority for the EU and its member states, as well as for its international partners.
The fight against terrorism is a very important topic for EU citizens who, according to the latest Eurobarometer poll, want the EU to do more in this field.
2021 marks 20 years after 9/11, the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York. It is also the year Gilles de Kerchove retires after fourteen years as EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator.
On 8 July, the Council hosted a live online show to:
- take stock of the achievements of the EU’s counter-terrorism work
- discuss the main challenges
The show was streamed on the Council’s website and on Twitter.
Discussion topics
The show focused on three topics:
- 20 years after 9/11
- evolution of the threat and of the means
- the external dimension
During the show, Gilles de Kerchove and other high level speakers from EU institutions, member states, EU agencies, think tanks, international organisations and partner countries answered questions from the public and from social media users.
The recording of the event is available in English, French and German.
1. 20 years after 9/11, 6 years after Charlie Hebdo, 5 years after the Brussels attacks, what have we learned?
The EU has strongly increased its counter-terrorism response since 9/11 and even more since the Paris and Brussels attacks of 2015 and 2016. Daesh operates across borders and Schengen is a space without internal border controls, therefore a common response and modern cooperation tools are needed.
In this session speakers looked at the EU's efforts to fight against terrorism from the perspective of politicians, top counter-terrorism prosecutors, EU institutions and Europol. They exchanged views on:
- what worked and what didn't work
- the added value of EU cooperation
- the support of the EU agencies such as Europol and Eurojust to counter-terrorism investigations and prosecutions
- information sharing and analysis
- concrete success stories
- cracking down on terrorist financing, firearms and communication networks
- border security
- prevention of radicalisation and "soft" policies such as education, youth, culture and sport
2. Evolution of the threat and of the means
Anticipating emerging threats is crucial to the prevention of future attacks in Europe and protecting European citizens. This was emphasised in the EU counter-terrorism agenda presented by the European Commission in December 2020.
This session, involving high level speakers from EU institutions, member states, the private sector and academia looked at the emerging threats and how the EU can reduce their impact. It also discussed the digitalisation of security and disruptive technologies. In particular, participants focused on:
- terrorism in COVID-19 times
- right-wing extremist and jihadist terrorism
- online radicalisation
- the role of ideology
- dark web
- disinformation, hate speech, algorithmic amplification
- new technologies, including 3D printing, drones and artificial intelligence
- challenges facing law enforcement access to online information (encryption, data retention)
- data protection and privacy issues
3. The external dimension
The terrorist threat around the world remains high. Since 2015, the EU has significantly stepped up the development of counter-terrorism partnerships, in particular in its neighbourhood (Western Balkans, North Africa and the Middle East) but also in the Sahel region.
A high-level panel with representatives from the EU institutions, the UN, international diplomacy, the US and other partners discussed remaining challenges and ways to increase resilience in our society against evolving violent ideologies.
This session focused especially on:
- Daesh legacy in Syria and Iraq, anti-Daesh coalition
- withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan
- terrorist groups in Africa
- international cooperation
- working with partners on the ground
- EU counter-terrorism partnerships with its neighbours in the Western Balkans and around the Mediterranean
- spread of Islamist extremist ideology
- impact of foreign policy choices
- providing opportunities for youth
EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator
Gilles de Kerchove was appointed Counter-Terrorism Coordinator on 19 September 2007 by Javier Solana, who was then the EU High Representative for the Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.
The Counter-Terrorism Coordinator is in charge of:
- coordinating the Council's work on combating terrorism
- presenting policy recommendations and proposing priority areas for action to the Council
- monitoring the implementation of the EU counter-terrorism strategy
- maintaining an overview of all EU instruments, reporting to the Council and following up Council decisions
- coordinating with the relevant preparatory bodies of the Council, the Commission and the EEAS
- ensuring the EU plays an active role in the fight against terrorism
- improving communication between the EU and third countries
Last review: 10 January 2024