European Counter Terrorism Centre

Europe is currently facing a vicious, new form of international terrorism. The clear shift in Islamic State’s strategy of carrying out special forces-style attacks in the international environment, with a particular focus on Europe, as well as the growing number of foreign terrorist fighters, demonstrates the new challenges facing the EU and its Member States.

To ensure an effective response to these challenges, 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.

•  Rue des Petits Carmes 24A, 1000 Brussels , Belgien
•  +31 70 302 5000
•  https://www.europol.europa.eu/about-europol/european-counter-terrorism-centre-ectc