The European Union and the United States held their regular Counterterrorism Dialogue in Brussels on 25 May.

The European Union and the United States discussed their shared priorities in the global fight against terrorism and their assessment of the threat landscape around the world, including in the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Africa.  They also shared concerns about ISIS in Syria and Iraq, the threat from ISIS-K in Afghanistan and beyond, the challenges posed by al-Shabaab and other terrorist groups in East Africa, and the continued and expanding threat of terrorist groups in West Africa and the Sahel. 

The EU and the United States also discussed how to further improve strong transatlantic counterterrorism cooperation and how to strengthen international and multilateral efforts to address terrorism and to prevent and counter violent extremism, including racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism/violent right-wing extremism. 

They further reviewed their cooperation within the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, the Global Counterterrorism Forum, which the EU currently co-chairs, and their engagement in the UN Global CT Strategy Review.

The EU and the United States will hold the next iteration of the Counterterrorism Dialogue in 2024, in Washington D.C.

The EU was represented by European External Action Service (EEAS) Deputy Managing Director for Common Security and Defence Policy Joanneke Balfoort, joined by EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Ilkka Salmi and representatives from the European Commission. The Department of State’s acting Coordinator for Counterterrorism Christopher Landberg led the U.S. interagency delegation.