Fighting Terrorism—International Cooperation as a Strategy of Prevention

Germany and U.S. Cooperate to Combat Terrorism In a commentary published this week in the Journal of Homeland Security, Wolfgang Ischinger, German Ambassador to the United States, discusses "Fighting Terrorism-International Cooperation as a Strategy of Prevention." He cites domestic antiterrorism measures, bringing terrorists to justice, drying up the financial sources for terrorism, and public-private partnerships as ways in which Germany and the United States are working together to fight terrorism. This is the first in a series called "Diplomatic Perspectives."

Fighting Terrorism—International Cooperation as a Strategy of Prevention

Wolfgang Ischinger

April 2004

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Wolfgang Ischinger is German Ambassador to the United States.
More than two years after the attacks of 9/11 and subsequent assaults in Tunisia, Bali, Casablanca, Istanbul, and Madrid, it is clear that our Western democracies are not yet winning the war on global terrorism. To succeed, we need even stronger transatlantic cooperation on all fronts—diplomatic, law enforcement, financial, intelligence, and military.

When the European Union on 25 March 2004 adopted "The Guidelines for a Common Approach in the Fight Against Terrorism," which include a new position of European Union Counterterrorism Coordinator, it was a significant step forward. Now the European Union must build on that foundation while strengthening cooperation with the United States. As this process advances, it is useful to note the model already established by joint German-U.S. efforts.

International Cooperation and the German-U.S. Partnership

In April 2003, in its paper 2002 Pattern of Global Terrorism, the U.S. State Department said: "Germany is an active and critically important participant in the global coalition against terrorism and has made a valuable contribution to fighting terrorists inside and outside of German territory." Germany is working with the international community through the United Nations, NATO, and the G-8 countries and within the European Union to coordinate antiterrorism efforts across borders. Germany and the United States have a strong relationship on counterterrorism and homeland security. Since 9/11, German and U.S. authorities, particularly the FBI and CIA, have intensified their traditionally close cooperation. Up to 15 liaison officers from U.S. law enforcement agencies are participating in investigations now under way in Germany. The German Federal Criminal Police Office has two permanent liaison officers in Washington. In addition, a liaison officer from the German Federal Prosecutor is working in the U.S. Department of Justice.

The two governments also maintain close contacts at a very high level. Minister Otto Schily has met with Attorney General John Ashcroft and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge several times in Washington. In October 2003 in Berlin, Secretary Ridge stressed our two countries' close cooperation on counterterrorism. Germany and the United States agreed to cooperate on protecting critical information infrastructures as well as on exchanging information and experience regarding warning systems and techniques. They further agreed to maintain the leading role both countries play in establishing international standards for biometrics for visas, passports, and related documents in order to strengthen border security.

During the June 2003 conference in Washington on "Transatlantic Cooperation on Homeland Security and Counterterrorism," Minister Schily stated: "Our security agencies work together effectively and on the basis of the greatest mutual trust. That includes learning from each other, cooperation to improve terrorist-fighting techniques, and looking for the best available practices."

Moreover, Germany is playing an active role in the U.S. Container Security Initiative. Washington and Berlin have signed an agreement to improve bilateral cooperation on container security, with the aim of stopping terrorists from smuggling weapons of mass destruction in sea-cargo containers. U.S. Customs agents stationed in Germany are providing German customs officials with information to assess the risks of containers before they leave the ports of Bremerhaven and Hamburg.

In close partnership with the United States, Germany engaged as a member of the 14-country core group of the Proliferation Security Initiative in maritime and air interdiction exercises. This U.S. initiative, aimed at preventing the spread of materials that could be used to fabricate weapons of mass destruction, had its first active-duty call in October 2003. Through cooperation between German and U.S. intelligence services, a ship bound for Libya was intercepted in the Mediterranean Sea and illicit nuclear material aboard was confiscated.

A Secure and Democratic Future for Afghanistan—Germany's Commitment

Germany responded vigorously and promptly to the 9/11 terrorist assault. Its decision to deploy combat troops and peacekeeping forces to Afghanistan was historic in the context of Germany's post—World War II practice. About 2,250 German troops take part in the U.N.-mandated International Security Assistance Force and play a leading role in training the Afghan police force. Today, after the United States, Germany plays the largest role in the effort to bring stability and development to Afghanistan. Germany's bilateral contribution reached $1.2 billion at the end of 2003, not including its share of the additional costs incurred through NATO's lead role in the International Security Assistance Force (one fifth) or its contribution to commitments made by multilateral institutions such as the European Union (one quarter) and the World Bank.

Germany has hosted three important international conferences on Afghanistan. The most recent was held on 31 March and 1 April 2004 in Berlin, where a total of $8.2 billion in international aid was pledged. Afghanistan and its neighbors also signed the Berlin Counter-Narcotics Declaration, in which they agree to jointly fight the production and export of narcotics. Financial aid and the international community's commitment will help ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes a haven for terrorists.

Domestic Antiterrorism Measures

Domestically, Germany is continuing its investigations into the 9/11 attacks. The German Cabinet adopted two comprehensive antiterror legislative packages in September and December 2001 to strengthen security, disrupt terrorist funding sources, and improve the tools available to authorities in order to combat terrorism effectively. The measures include provisions for increased air traffic security and passage of a law regulating private associations to increase authorities' options for taking action against extremist organizations. A change in the German Criminal Code provides for the prosecution in Germany of terrorist acts committed in foreign countries. More authority has been granted to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the Military Counter-Intelligence Investigation Office, the Federal Intelligence Service, the Federal Criminal Police Office, and the Federal Border Police, specifically in gathering and evaluating information. For example, the Federal Intelligence Service, working within the antiterrorism framework, is permitted to use technical instruments to locate cell phones in use.

Bringing Terrorists to Justice

Germany has been successful in prosecuting and convicting terrorists. The German Public Prosecutor General is conducting more than 50 investigations related to Islamic-fundamentalist terrorism.

One example of how well German and U.S. authorities are cooperating in terrorism investigations is the case of two Yemeni terrorist suspects. Sheikh Al-Moyad and his alleged assistant, who were captured in Frankfurt on 10 January 2003, were extradited to the United States on 16 November 2003, following a U.S. request. They are to be put on trial in a criminal court in New York on charges of supplying arms, recruits, and more than $20 million to the al-Qaeda terrorist network.

Drying Up the Financial Sources for Terrorism

Regulations in Germany require financial institutions to have effective systems to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. In its continuing campaign against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, Germany has developed numerous measures to improve the fight against illegal financial flows. Although these measures mirror international standards, they have proven more stringent than international requirements in many aspects. Taken together, the German government's anti—money laundering policies combine law-enforcement measures with a preventive approach to institutional risk management in the financial sector.

Public-Private Partnerships as an Effective Means to Protect Critical Infrastructure

Another important element in fighting terrorism is the effort to increase public-private partnerships, since terrorists are increasingly aiming at "soft targets" and critical infrastructures. As in the United States, most of the infrastructure in Germany, some 85%, is in private hands. Prevention is the most important goal. The private sector offers enormous potential in terms of producing innovative solutions and, in most cases, works more flexibly and efficiently at a lower cost than does the public sector. When tasks and risks are distributed properly, reducing the burden on the government and opening new markets for businesses can create a win-win situation. Without security, the economy cannot flourish.

In Germany, we are successfully using public-private partnerships in the security field. German passports are produced by a private company at a rate of 10 million a year. A German company produces personal identification documents with high-security standards for foreign countries, including the United States, incorporating biometrics technology such as digitized photographs. A German company provides equipment to identify persons entering the World Trade Center site in New York. German companies are doing pioneering work in high-technology security and communication systems. The introduction of new biometrics technology offers enormous possibilities for public-private partnerships, working in conformity with international standards. As strengthening public-private partnerships has proven an effective tool in preventing terrorism at the national level, bolstering the public-private partnerships across the Atlantic is the next important step in our joint efforts to combat and prevent international terrorism.

Inevitably, differences, particularly over tactics on a range of issues, arise within and among the democracies in Europe and North America. But this is not one of those: Germany and the United States are like two peas in a pod in the fight against terrorism. Pluralism and free debate are among the values we are defending. Our task is to demonstrate to friend and foe alike that we stand to our commitment to remain united in that fight—both in principle and practice—as we meet what has become this generation's great challenge.