The US and European approaches to fighting terrorism Research Paper

The US and European approaches to fighting terrorism - Research Paper Example Terrorism can simply be defined as strategies to coerce or cause terror. The official Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) definition of terrorism takes apart domestic and international terrorism.The FBI (2002) explains, "Domestic terrorism refers to activities that involve acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or any state; appear to be intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; to influence the policy of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping; and occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States." It further says, "International terrorism involves violent acts or acts of dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or any state, or that would be a criminal violation if committed within the jurisdiction of the United States or any state." (White p4)The European believes that the security at home and overseas can be accomplished if there is stability and development in the Mediterranean. In France where there is a large population of Muslim and Jews, practically every significant domestic political issue from crimes, immigration, and anti-Semitism, has an imperative Mediterranean dimension. They perceive that the source of terrorism lie in the economic, social and political discriminations that are prevalent on the southern seaside of the Mediterranean and as such can only be addressed through a broad structure that hits at the deepest causes of terrorism. During the time that the Soviet Union crumbled, the members of the European Union no longer saw possible North-South conflicts or nuclear threats. Instead, they saw various south-south conflicts and series of new transnational risks such as illegal trafficking of arms, drugs and even persons; terrorism connected to numerous religious issues; immigration. EU further believes that European security should be less focused on military conditions instead to s ocial and political development of Mediterranean. In the United States, the FBI is a part of vast criminal justice machinery tasked to maintaining legal and political order. They deal with terrorism based on how they perceive acts related to it. According to the FBI, "Terrorist acts are intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination or kidnapping and occur primarily outside the territorial jurisdiction of the United States or transcend national boundaries in terms of the means by which they accomplished, the persons they appear intended to intimidate or coerce, or the locale in which their perpetrators operate or seek asylum." However, other people are apprehensive about the way the US defines terrorism since some in the Muslim countries believe that the values of the Islam are threatened by the materialism of the West. The US focus to fighting terrorism is to strengthen its military cap acities. They are plagued by what had happened during the 9/11 that US became aggressive in terms of fighting terrorism. Even when countries are cooperating fully, there is no way to suppress or prohibit every conceivable terrorist movement or conspiracy. A more realistic situation would be to increase considerably the costs and risks that criminals and terrorists face when they choose to engage in conspiracies. Further than that, more measures can be taken. The United States can work more with European partners to strengthen states in