Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – EU Council approves counterterrorism conclusions, focusing on information exchange, detection, prevention, and online extremism efforts.

As violent extremism and terrorism continue to present a considerable threat to the European Union and its member nations, the European Council approved the first of two sets of conclusions on supporting joint counterterrorism measures. 

In the European Council decisions, member nations report that global unrest has exacerbated the terrorism threat level in some member nations. Those external disputes have assisted in boosting radicalisation and social polarisation across the European Union, which may in turn potentially result in increasing terrorism and violent extremism.

What are the EU’s key goals for tackling extremism and terrorism?

As reported by the European Council, the conclusions established strategic goals and emphasised key areas where advanced efforts are required to improve operational efficiency. The conclusions seek to shape EU counterterrorism procedures and measures for the next five years. To additionally enhance counterterrorism efforts, on 16 December 2024, the European Council will endorse conclusions on reinforcing external-internal links in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism.

The European Council calls on member states to improve their preparedness and reaction capabilities to stop terrorist and violent extremist attacks. The conclusions emphasise three key areas of intervention for supporting counterterrorism efforts: information exchange; detecting and preventing the infiltration of individuals posing a terrorist threat; and countering terrorism and violent extremism online.

Moreover, to catch and prevent the infiltration of individuals posing a security threat, the EU Council invites member states to persist in inserting alerts based on return findings in the Schengen Information System and urges the Commission and member states to operationalise the practical return of persons presenting a security threat.