Countermeasures

GAO report highlights gaps in counterterrorism information sharing

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on Tuesday detailing the security gaps in counterterrorism operations with overseas partners.

The report warns that many countries involved with the visa waiver program (VWP) are not holding to the agreements they made to exchange information with the United States about terrorism suspects.

“GAO’s report is disturbing, particularly in light of the high terror threat environment. Thousands of Europeans have gone to fight in Syria and Iraq, and most of them are from countries that have visa-free access to the United States,” House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) said. “These extremists are only a plane-flight away from our shores, which is why overseas counterterrorism cooperation is critical. But if our partners do not share data about terror suspects quickly and transparently, such fanatics might be able to slip through the cracks to enter our country. This is unacceptable. We need to put more pressure on our allies to live up to their obligations or face the prospect of being suspended from the Visa Waiver Program. We passed a law in December demanding that foreign partners live up to these agreements, and I urge the Department of Homeland Security to implement that legislation aggressively.”

The VWP allows for foreign travelers to come to the United States visa-free for up to 90 days. In return, participating countries are required to share information about known or suspected terrorists. The GAO report, however, found that one-third of participating countries failed to share terrorist identity information under the agreements.

Alex Murtha

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