08 September 2006
U.S., Allies Cooperating To Enhance Security, U.S. Official Says, September 8, 2006(Homeland Security's Chertoff urges stronger links with American Muslim community)
By Jacquelyn S. Porth
Washington File Security Affairs Writer
Washington – The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, persuaded the United States and allied nations not to be complacent in the face of terrorism, says Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.
Speaking only days before the fifth anniversary of the tragic attacks in New York and Washington, Chertoff said the destruction at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon was a “clear warning of what lies ahead if we do not continue to build our safety and security here in the United States and all over the world.”
Chertoff told students at Georgetown University September 8 that the United States is working with its international partners to disrupt terrorist plots before they reach a "point of no return." He said part of his job is to evaluate and prioritize high-consequence threats such as a terrorist attack using chemical, biological, nuclear or radiological weapons.
He also pointed to the importance of building “a new level of confidence and trust” within the American Muslim community, because it is a key partner in protecting against future attacks. This community’s input is important to help track not only the high-visibility international threats, Chertoff said, but also “the low-visibility homegrown threats that could take root in any community.”
The secretary also talked about the many layers of security that have been created in the past five years, such as screening travelers at U.S. borders, information sharing, cargo screening and enhanced emergency preparedness and response measures. (See related article.)
The disrupted August 2006 plot against airliners bound from London to the United States demonstrated the importance of determining “as early as possible who is trying to come into this country from overseas, and who is trying to get on an airplane that might do us harm,” Chertoff said. (See related article.)
Right now passenger identity information for international flights reaches U.S. officials 50 minutes after takeoff. “That’s simply too late,” he said.
Over the next two years, a new system will be implemented to transmit that information well in advance of a flight’s departure, according to Chertoff. “This will give us the time to check passenger names against databases and to coordinate with airlines and foreign authorities to prevent a suspicious person from getting on an airplane.” Such a pre-notification is already operational between the United Kingdom and the United States, he said.
The necessary information exists now, but Chertoff said the Europeans need to lift some of their restrictions so the data can be fully analyzed and a potential terrorist can be prevented from entering the country. He said his plea to the Europeans is to work together now to ease restrictions before another attack like those of 9/11 occurs.
Over the next year, Chertoff said he looks forward to working with his European colleagues to collect needed information and ensure it is fully analyzed while respecting “the privacy of those who travel internationally.”
He also talked about a variety of initiatives under way, including the creation of a secure biometric credential for those traveling in the Western Hemisphere, a secure driver’s license, and plans to take prints of all 10 fingers of those making their first visit to the United States.
Chertoff emphasized the deterrent effect of creating such a biometric security net, especially when devices to read fingerprints are deployed at U.S. visa-issuing posts overseas as well as at U.S. ports of entry.
He also mentioned plans to deploy radiation portal monitors at all U.S. land and sea entry points by the end of 2007. “We’re also going to move overseas and continue to push to do as much of the screening as we can in foreign ports, working with our foreign partners,” Chertoff added.
By the end of 2008, the first phase of a program called “Securing the Cities” will be completed, the secretary predicted. Starting with New York, he said, the plan is to “conduct nuclear and radiological scanning of the principal pathways into the cities, whether they be over land, in the water, or underground.”
Because terrorists are constantly adapting their methods and tactics, “we have to keep pace and get ahead,” Chertoff said.
More information about other points Chertoff discussed is available in a fact sheet on the Department of Homeland Security’s Web site.
For more information on U.S. policy, see Response to Terrorism.
