Ambassador Timothy L. Towell: An in Depth Look at Terrorism Part 2, Counterterrorism

1. Ambassador Timothy L.
Towell: An in Depth Look at
Terrorism Part 2,
Counterterrorism

2. Counterterrorism expert Timothy L. Towell parlays
a distinguished career in the United States
Foreign Service, as well as a position as United
States Ambassador to Paraguay into his current
position as President of The Foreign Policy
Group.

3. Counterterrorism consists of a widespread group
of agencies, policies, and techniques deployed to
combat and protect against acts of terrorism. In
the United States, every citizen plays an informal
role in counterterrorism efforts via alert awareness
and reportage. On a national level, however,
many formal organizations exist that incorporate a
counterterrorism element. In some cases, such as
the Department of Homeland Security,
counterterrorism proves the sole organizational
objective. Agencies involved in counterterrorism
include local, state, and federal law enforcement;
the military; government contractors; corporations;
and foreign agencies.

4. On a national level, governments fight terrorism
by applying economic, military, or political
pressure to states that support it. By utilizing
these strategies, the government hopes that the
foreign state will refuse to supply military,
economic, political, or other support to terrorists
within their own borders. Tactically,
counterterrorism efforts occur on many levels. For
instance, security screenings at airports are a
counterterrorism tactic, as are intelligence
operations that seek to obtain information utilized
to identify terrorists and their plots.

5. The United States employs multiple policies
aimed directly at counterterrorism, including
treating terrorists as criminals, refusing to
negotiate with them, and bringing known terrorists
to justice for their crimes.

6. No single strategy or policy will bring about an
end to terrorism. Instead, governments must
aggressively attack the problem from all angles,
utilizing a broad array of strategies and policies to
protect its citizens.

7. No single strategy or policy will bring about an
end to terrorism. Instead, governments must
aggressively attack the problem from all angles,
utilizing a broad array of strategies and policies to
protect its citizens.