How to stop terrorism: EU measures explained
Stopping terrorism requires tackling issues such as foreign fighters, border controls and cutting off funds. Learn about the EU’s counter terrorism policies.
EU measures to prevent new attacks run from more thorough checks at Europe’s borders, to better police and judicial cooperation on tracing suspects and pursuing perpetrators, cutting the financing of terrorism, tackling organised crime, addressing radicalisation and others.
What is the EU definition of terrorism?
The as set down in the directive on combatting terrorism, are acts committed with the aim of:
- Seriously intimidating a population, or
- Unduly compelling a government or international organisation to perform or abstain from performing any act, or
- Seriously destabilising or destroying the fundamental political, constitutional, economic or social structures of a country or an international organisation
Improving EU border controls
Following several terrorist attacks in Europe and in order to safeguard security within the Schengen zone, systematic on all people entering the EU - including EU citizens - were introduced in April 2017.
To record the movements of non-EU citizens across the Schengen area and speed up controls, the EU approved in 2017 rules for a new biometric . The launch of the system is pending.
Also, travellers from non-EU countries that do not need to have a visa to enter the EU through the European Travel Information and Authorisation (Etias) system, which should be operational from 2025.
Temporary border controls
Since 2015, in the wake of the migration crisis, as well as the increase of cross-border terrorist threats, a number of Schengen states introduced . These controls were prolonged on a number of occasions and in some countries have applied ever since. The Covid-19 pandemic also pushed EU counries to bring back internal border controls in 2020, in an attempt to control the spread of the virus.
ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ has repeatedly criticised the continuation of internal border checks in the Schengen area and wants to allow them only as a measure of last resort. In a resolution on EU coordinated action to combat the pandemic adopted in April 2020, ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ urged EU countries to adopt only necessary and proportionate measures when introducing and prolonging internal border controls, stressing the need to get back to a fully functioning Schengen area.
ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ approved in April 2024 an update of the Schengen rules that set clear time limits for internal border controls. The Council gave its approval in May 2024.
Securing external borders
The European Border and Coast Guard should have a standing corps of to effectively secure Europe’s 13,000 km of external land borders and nearly 66,000 km at sea. The new standing corps could, at the request of an EU country, carry out border control and migration management as well as fight cross-border crime.
In a resolution adopted in July 2021, ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ approved the renewed Integrated Border Management Fund (IBMF) and agreed to allocate €6.24 billion to it. The fund helps to boost EU countries’ capacities in border management while ensuring fundamental rights are respected. It also contributes to a common, harmonised visa policy and introduces protective measures for vulnerable people arriving in Europe, notably unaccompanied children.
The fund works closely with the new Internal Security Fund (ISF), focusing on tackling terrorism, organised crime and cybercrime. The ISF was also approved by ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ in July 2021 with a budget of €1.9 billion.
Stopping foreign terrorist fighters
Since 2015, there has been an increase in religiously-inspired terrorism in the EU. By 2017 about 5,000 individuals from the EU were believed to have travelled to conflict areas in Syria and Iraq to join terrorist groups, but the number has dropped significantly since.
In 2019, few of those foreign fighters were reported to have returned, however .
In order to criminalise acts such as undertaking training or travelling for terrorist purposes, as well as organising or facilitating such travel, Europe put in place that, together with new controls at the external borders, will help to tackle the foreign fighter phenomenon.
Making use of air passenger data
Airlines operating flights to and from the EU are obliged to hand national authorities the such as names, travel dates, itinerary and payment method.
This so-called PNR data is used to prevent, detect, investigate and prosecute terrorist offences and serious crimes. Negotiations took more than five years and for sensitive data (revealing racial origin, religion, political opinion, health or sexual orientation) and data protection.
Stepping up the exchange of information
Criminals and terrorists often use multiple false identities to evade border guards and police. This highlights the importance of effective information sharing between the relevant authorities - law enforcement, judicial, intelligence - in the member states.
In 2018 (SIS) were agreed, introducing new types of alerts for cases related to terrorist activities. The database allows police and border guards to enter and consult alerts on wanted or missing persons and lost or stolen property.
To use existing and future databases in a more intelligent and targeted way, the EU information systems that help manage borders, security and migration should enable data exchange. This should provide a single interface for searches, as well as a biometric matching service to facilitate identification.
Europol, the EU police agency, supports the exchange of information between national police authorities. In May 2016 MEPs agreed to give to step up the fight against terrorism as well as to set up specialised units such as the European counter terrorism centre, which was launched on 25 January 2016.
On 9 December 2020, along with its counter-terrorism agenda, the proposed to further reinforce Europol’s mandate by enabling it to issue information alerts on suspects and criminals as a new alert category in the Schengen Information System, strengthening its role on research and innovation and allowing it to process large and complex datasets. The legislative proposal also enables the agency to directly exchange data with private parties. The rules for Europol’s updated mandate. have been in force since June 2022.
Cutting the financing of terrorism
An effective measure to stop terrorists is to cut their sources of revenue and disrupt logistics. In order to do this, the European ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ updated the in 2018, aiming to increase transparency about the people behind companies and address risks linked to virtual currencies and anonymous pre-paid cards.
Money laundering is a criminal offence in all EU countries, but definitions and sanctions vary. The 2018 rules to aim to close those loopholes.
Criminal activities in Europe are believed to generate about €110 billion every year. However, only 1.1% of criminal proceeds are effectively confiscated. In October 2018 new rules were agreed to make it easier to freeze and across the EU.
On 10 July 2020, ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ welcomed the Commission’s new action plan on how to fight effectively against money laundering and terrorist financing. The resolution supports a much stricter, zero-tolerance stance towards countries who lag behind in transposing the anti-money laundering rules into national law and urged that high-risk non-EU countries must be immediately blacklisted.
ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ adopted a package of anti-money laundering measures in April 2024, granting national inancial intelligence authorities increased powers to analyse and detect money laundering and terrorist financing cases, as well as to suspend suspicious transactions.
Reducing access to dangerous weapons
The EU does everything possible to prevent coming into the hands of the wrong people.
The revised closes the legal loopholes which allowed terrorists to use reconverted weapons for example in the Paris 2015 attacks. It requires EU countries to have a proper monitoring system while keeping exceptions for hunters, museums and collectors.
The vast majority of terrorist attacks in the EU were perpetrated using home-made bombs. It will be thanks to stricter rules agreed by ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ in April 2019.
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Preventing radicalisation
Terrorists and extremists use the internet to spread propaganda and radicalisation. In April 2021, ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ approved new rules forcing online companies such as Facebook or YouTube to remove terrorist content or disable access to it in all EU countries within one hour after receiving an order from relevant authorities. The new rules do not apply to journalistic or educational content.
Radicalisation and countering it was one of the focus points of a , which concluded its one-year work in December 2018. ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ suggested an EU watch list of hate preachers, because they can now operate undetected if they move from one European country to another. Members also recommended segregating radicalised inmates in prisons as well specific training on radicalisation for EU and member states officials.
Most of the terrorist attacks in Europe were perpetrated by , European citizens born in the EU who radicalised without even leaving Europe. ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ proposed measures to in prisons, online and through education and social inclusion already in 2015.
In December 2020, ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ endorsed the and the , which aims to prevent radicalisation by providing, for example, opportunities for young people at risk and supporting the rehabilitation of radicalised prisoners.
The EU added value
The EU level is the main forum for cooperation and coordination among member states in the fight against terrorism, even though combatting crime and ensuring security is primarily a national competence.
MEPs decide together with EU ministers on major EU counter-terrorism laws. Traditionally, ºÏ·¨²©²ÊÍøÕ¾ watches over respect for fundamental rights and data protection, which is needed especially in a context of a crisis-driven policy and pressure for action.
Security in Europe is a joint priority for the EU institutions. is based on four strands: prevent, protect, pursue and respond. The Commission’s aims to facilitate cooperation among member states in three priority areas: fighting organised crime and cybercrime, counter terrorism and fighting radicalisation The EU also works to improve its in cooperation with non-EU countries.