Counterterrorism

Diplomacy

The diplomatic dimension of counterterrorism traditionally is associated with foreign relations and international terrorism, but it is also applicable when fighting domestic terrorism. Diplomacy is the art of persuading others to do things that serve mutual interests. The diplomatic component of counterterrorism encompasses activities such as persuading Lebanon to close down terrorist training camps, securing Pakistan's permission to arrest [Page 142]and render the terrorist Ramzi Yousef to U.S. authorities, or the FBI sharing information with local police in order to prevent a terrorist attack. The use of diplomacy also involves reaching an international consensus on how to handle issues ranging from aviation security to tagging explosives to imposing sanctions on state sponsors of terrorism. Most importantly, it involves developing and implementing policy responses to terrorism or the threat of it.

Diplomacy has been used more frequently and with more success on the international front. Domestically, however, it has not been as successful. Interactions among federal, state, and local officials can be just as complicated and sensitive as any operation conducted overseas, and proper coordination among the different law enforcement agencies can play a critical role in building a prosecutable case against a terrorist. Law enforcement officials across the United States have frequently complained that federal officials, particularly the FBI, work in a vacuum, ignore local police, and refuse to share information. The cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security, established shortly after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, mandated that the FBI and CIA share information with each other and with the department itself. It was hoped that such top-level coordination would translate into better interdepartmental cooperation at all levels.

Finding and arresting terrorists outside the United States is a significant undertaking. It requires the cooperation of foreign governments and coordination among a variety of agencies. The arrest of the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, Ramzi Yousef, is a case in point. The U.S. government first learned of his whereabouts thanks to an informant who walked into the U.S. embassy in Pakistan and told U.S. diplomats where Yousef was staying. Elements of several U.S. government agencies were involved in vetting the information provided by the source and putting in place an operation to apprehend Yousef. In addition, the United States asked for and received the full assistance of the government of Pakistan to arrest and remove Yousef from Pakistan. This type of coordination and cooperation is characteristic of what happens when things go well. But such events do not happen of their own accord; it takes preparation and often years of work to put the mechanisms in place. Securing cooperation is the nuts and bolts of diplomacy.

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