Fight against Terrorism

Abstract

This chapter scrutinizes the suspense-packed IOR between the EU and the COE in the fight against terrorism, which, as one can see in the following text, is the case with the second-highest level of conflict, only seconded by the controversies over the EU FRA. The conflict arises from the competitive situation of the two IOs in combating terrorism in the aftermath of 9/11. This chapter traces the origins of the COE Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism, shows how the EU limited the COE’s role by supporting the UN approach, and tackles the controversial inclusion of the ‘Disconnection Clause’ into the Convention. After the successful adoption of the Convention, the EU’s decision to launch its own initiative by copying the COE consensus into a framework decision caused major ill humor in Strasbourg. Prior to analyzing in depth the contentious matters and the defensive behavior of the COE, the following sections tackle the issue of terrorism in Europe prior to 9/11(5.1) and the roles of the COE (5.2) and the EU in this issue area (5.3).