XXX. Commentary-The Road Ahead: Ronald Winfrey

• Author: Ronald Winfrey
• Pages: 473

J im Terry spoke about pursuing regional cooperation in the fight against terrorism, about the effective exchange of information, about intelligence gathering and sharing. I too shall touch on a few of those points momentarily, as well as a new framework within the structure of the US Pacific Command that is being used to promote such cooperation;

There is quite clearly, a pervasive global threat when you talk about addressing international terrorism. As the twenty-first century progresses, it is marked by increased interdependence and an increasingly multilateral response to these threats. Interagency coordination is currently a buzzword within the US Government but this term is somewhat lacking as it misses a vital part of what is necessary in this global war on terrorism. Interagency coordination is simply part of the solution. It must be coupled with intergovernment coordination on a scale never seen before. With this must come cooperative efforts with nongovernmental organizations as well.

A framework that I would suggest as a potential starting point for promoting regional cooperation on terrorism is that used by the Pacific Command's 1. Ronald Winfrey currently serves as Attorney-Advisor for International Law and Homeland Defense and as the foreign engagement coordinator for the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate,

US Pacific Command.

joint interagency coordination group for counter-terrorism. This particular organization was formed at Pacific Command in Honolulu immediately after the events of September 11th. It was formed in Pacific Command's Operations Directorate and it is a permanent part of that organization.

Generally, we know that terrorists have and will continue to exploit legal seams between nations, such as nations where passports are easily obtained, as well as the inherent seams between law enforcement agencies and immigration agencies. Indeed as we now know, the perpetrators of the September 11th attacks were using legally obtained US visas. Acknowledging that some of these seams may never be closed, there is still much that can be done. As with many other aspects of this War on Terrorism, the effort to close the seams will not be the domain of any single agency, department or ministry. Accordingly, new forms of governmental and international cooperation are required.

The new counter-terrorism group at Pacific Command is designed to emphasize capabilities. While coordination is imperative, it is not the means to defeat...