An Unequal Fight: Strengthening Europol’s Counter-terrorism Mandate

Although Europol has evolved as a complex counter-terrorist entity, its role is confined to information sharing, and it is far from being a truly operational counter-terrorism centre. Europol has no operational powers and remains dependent on national agencies for information gathering and operational support.
– Europol does not hold all the supranational powers that could be delegated to it under the terms of the current EU treaties. It lacks the executive power of arrest and remains dependent on national agencies for terrorism-related intelligence gathering and analysis.

Europol usually acts as a post-attack handler tackling repercussions of violence already perpetrated, not an effective preventive actor.
– All stakeholders and member states should think about upgrading Europol’s counter-terrorist role. Without granting Europol intelligence-gathering rights and operational powers, it will be impossible to enhance its counter-terrorist role.
– Politicians and representatives of member states should start working to expand Europol’s mandate in order to increase its efficacy in fighting terrorism. This expansion should also include Europol’s budget and other resources (human, technical and material).