Before London” “” “

International terrorism was a focal point of attention by the European Union already before the attacks on the Twin Towers in New York. But with 11 September 2001 the “invisible enemy” became a “fixed guest”, however unwelcome, on the EU agenda. After Madrid and London, the anti-terrorism strategy formulated in Brussels in recent years has been revived, but still waits to be put into practice. Apart from measures taken on the wave of popular grief and indignation (e.g. the temporary suspension of the Treaty of Schengen for the free circulation of persons decided by France), the efforts to combat a terrorism that knows no frontiers requires closer cooperation, proper resources and the political will of the Twenty-Five. “RECONCILING freedom with security”. The question of internal security imposed itself on the EU debate with the European Council at Tampere in October 1999, when the then 15 member states established the stages for realizing a European area of liberty, security and justice, with the intention of undertaking common policies in the fields of immigration, asylum, and the fight against organized crime. Ever since then cooperation between the member states has been stepped up and various decisions of the Union have been reached, aimed, with various effectiveness, at: realizing greater cooperation between the national judicial authorities and security forces; improving access to the data banks of the various countries; creating a European programme for the protection of critical infrastructures; and reinforcing the cooperation and exchange of information to block the sources of funding for terrorism. SolidariTY AND JOINT ACTIONS. After the terrorist attacks in Madrid, the European Council of 25-26 March 2004 imposed on the EU the urgent need to crack down on terrorism. The then President of the European Council, Irish premier Bertie Ahern, ascertained during the summit the unanimous will for a coordinated offensive: “No country in the world may be considered immune from the threat. Terrorism – declared Ahern – will be defeated only with solidarity and collective action”. The Dutchman Gijs de Vries was called to coordinate the EU interventions in this field that provide, among other things, for: the “solidarity clause” for a joint response to violent acts; the improvement of judicial cooperation; the sharing of intelligence; the reinforcement of frontier controls; and the consolidation of Europol and Eurojust. The Council and the Commission insist that “alongside these measures, a determined effort be made to address the causes that lie at the basis of so many economic and social injustices, often the root cause of terrorism”. UNRESOLVED PROBLEMS AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL. In March 2005 the EU commemorated the first anniversary of the Madrid bombings, and revived the measures long prospected, but never implemented, in the fight against terrorism. “The 11 March 2004 placed Europeans in the world perspective of terrorism, which needs a global response”, declared the President of the European Parliament, the Spaniard Josep Borrell, in his speech in Strasbourg. He also observed that “the traditional cross-border judicial cooperation is no longer enough”. He continued by listing many of the still unresolved problems: “What are the funding problems that prevent the full operational capacity of Europol? When will we have a European public prosecutor? When will we have a European legislation that prevents the recycling of capital, often the source of the funding of terrorist organizations?”. Lastly Borrell insisted on the importance, as a means of prevention, of “fostering cultural and religious dialogue, without forgetting cooperation in development”. THE WARNING FROM LONDON. The EU anti-terrorism strategy is slowly taking shape. It can rely on a series of previous provisions: on 5 September 2001 the European Parliament has in fact adopted a resolution calling for a “European arrest warrant”. Various actions followed, including the freezing of the assets of persons suspected of extremist actions (Autumn 2001), the accords with the USA on extradition and judicial cooperation (2003), the querelle with the USA on the transmission of data relating to air passengers on transatlantic flights (2003-2004), and the projects for the future European passport, comprising biometric data (2003). In May 2005 the Commissioner for security, the Italian Franco Frattini, finally outlined to the Parliament the “action plan” adopted by the Commission “for the realization of a European area of liberty, security and justice”. “We have prepared a programme that comprises 84 measures in the field of the Commission’s mandate – explained Frattini -; 32 measures will already be implemented by the end of 2005, which will be the most important year for the launch of the action plan”. This strategy was supposed to be at the centre of interest of the EU Council in mid-June, which was characterized, instead, by the conflict on the Financial Prospects and the moratorium on the ratification of the Constitution. It has taken the 55 victims of the London bombings to bring back the question of terrorism to the central agenda of the Eu.