European counter-terrorism center (ectc)
- Country: Netherlands
- City: The Hague
- Type: Multilateral
- Scale: European
- Category: Operational work and support
Host
Description
In January 2016 Europol created the European Counter Terrorism Centre (ECTC), an operations centre and hub of expertise that reflects the growing need for the EU to strengthen its response to terror.
Designed as a central hub in the EU in the fight against terrorism, the ECTC focuses on:
-providing operational support upon a request from a EU Member State for investigations;
-tackling foreign fighters;
-sharing intelligence and expertise on terrorism financing (through the Terrorist Finance Tracking Programme and the Financial Intelligence Unit);
-online terrorist propaganda and extremism (through the EU Internet Referral Unit);
illegal arms trafficking;
international cooperation among counter terrorism authorities.
Coordination Patterns
A constituent part of Europol’s Operations Department, the ECTC works closely with other operational centres at Europol, such as the European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) and the European Migrant Smuggling Centre (EMSC).
Role of the EU
The Europol Directorate is appointed by the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA) for four-year terms. The Agency is controlled by the Justice and Home Affairs Council. Together with the European Parliament, the Council approves Europol's budget and regulations related to its work.
Relevance for the EU
The ECTC’s principal task is to provide operational support to 28 EU Member States in investigations following terrorist attacks. It cross-checks live operational data against the data Europol already has, quickly bringing financial leads to light, and analyses all available investigative details to assist in compiling a structured picture of the terrorist network. Europol also helps harmonise investigative techniques across Member States. And it regularly organises awareness-raising events for EU law enforcement officers so as to enhance their knowledge of its services, and thus help their international cases. The agency also is entitles to provide support to the European Council and European Commission in developing policy staretegies.