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From Enforcement to Strategic Partnership: The Contemporary Challenge of the United Nations in Countering Terrorism

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Abstract

The attacks of 9/11 spurred the international community to elevate extreme political violence to a threat to international peace and security. For the United Nations (UN) issues of “enforcement” were centre stage in the response, alongside state capacity-building and a unique ongoing role for the Security Council in the domain of counter-terrorism. With the excesses of the U.S.A. “war on terror’, the response of civil society and many states has challenged the relevance and legitimacy of the UN, leading to the development and 2006 adoption by all states of a broad-based Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. This paper examines the development and limitations of action by the Security Council and reviews the launch of a UN strategy billed as the basis for a “principled and effective” response to terrorism. The prospects of success are reviewed with reference to the adoption of UN norms, the funding of state capacity building and the continued need for Security Council reform.

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Notes

  1. On 12 September 2001, SCR 1368 set out the Security Council's specific response to the 11 September attacks by Al Qaeda, including recognition of the ‘inherent right of individual or collective self-defence in accordance with the Charter’. These elements are outside the scope of this paper, but can be reviewed in Cassese, n.d.; Dupuy, n.d.; and Stahn, n.d.

  2. As Szasz states, the Security Council is not obliged to regard the will of the international community by taking regard of the view of the UN General Assembly, but ‘would also be well advised to do so’ (Szasz, 2002, p. 905).

  3. In full, this states:Stage A: The CTC first looks at whether a State has in place effective counter-terrorism legislation in all areas of activity related to resolution 1373, with specific focus on combating terrorist financing. The CTC focuses on legislation as key issue because without an effective legislative framework States cannot develop executive machinery to prevent and suppress terrorism, or bring terrorists and their supporters to justice. Countering-terrorist financing included as a Stage A priority because of the special emphasis placed on this aspect of support for terrorism in operative paragraph 1 of resolution 1373. In order to ensure a methodical and progressive approach, third and future reviews of a State's reports should continue to focus on “Stage A” until the CTC has no further comments at this stage.Stage B: Once States have in place legislation covering all aspects of resolution 1373, the next phase of implementation can be broadly defined as a State, in accordance with its responsibilities, within its sovereign jurisdiction, fully to implement resolution 1373, strengthening its executive machinery to implement resolution 1373-related legislation. “Stage B” might, in the light of experience so far, include activity along effective and coordinated executive machinery covering all aspects of resolution 1373 and in particular preventing recruitment to terrorist groups, the movement of terrorists, the establishment of terrorist safe havens and any other forms of passive or active support for terrorists or terrorist groups. Effective executive machinery includes, inter alia, having in place: police and intelligence structures to detect, monitor and apprehend those involved in terrorist activities and those supporting terrorist activities, customs, immigration and border controls to prevent the movement of terrorists and the establishment of safe havens, and controls preventing the access to weapons by terrorists.Stage C: Differences in circumstances mean that progress through these priorities will not be uniform. The CTC recognizes that every State is an individual case; however, it asks all States to move towards implementation of resolution 1373 at their fastest capable speed. Looking further ahead, the CTC will at some stage need to consider its dialogue with States who already have in place adequate legislation covering all aspects of resolution 1373 and adequate executive machinery implementing this legislation, and who have not been identified as requiring other priority attention. In such cases, the CTC might move on to monitor “Stage C” of resolution 1373 implementation, building on “Stages A and B” and covering the remaining areas of 1373. The objectives set out above may be reviewed by the CTC after a further experience of the process. (CTC, 2003a).

  4. Based upon the assistance projects “Strengthening the legal regime against terrorism” (UN ODC, 2003, p. 6).

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  1. Institute of Criminal Justice Studies/Centre for European and International Studies Research, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, U.K.

    Paul Norman

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Norman, P. From Enforcement to Strategic Partnership: The Contemporary Challenge of the United Nations in Countering Terrorism. Secur J 20, 197–209 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.sj.8350061

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