While the Trump administration has not yet released a second-term counterterrorism strategy, it has already taken major steps to reshape the U.S. government’s CT approach and the wider terrorism landscape, from designating drug cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) for the first time to revoking sanctions on Syrian jihadists, downgrading efforts to counter violent extremism, and driving an agreement to end the Hamas-Israel war. The previous Trump administration did not announce its counterterrorism strategy until its second year in office. This term, the White House should release the document sooner, which would enable the administration to explain its international CT vision and contextualize how and whether its actions abroad fit into this framework, especially amid dramatic changes in the Middle East over the past two years. This would also send a message that counterterrorism remains a national security priority. In particular, the international aspects of the next U.S. counterterrorism strategy should address the following factors.
What a Trump Counterterrorism Strategy Should Say | The Washington Institute
