Ambassador Griffin Highlights International Cooperation of Law Enforcement in Fight Against Terrorism

Good evening. It is a pleasure to be here with you tonight, on the eve of the 113th annual meeting of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

The breadth of experience, knowledge, and nationalities that we have gathered in this room tonight underscores the complex nature and the global scope of the threats we face from terrorism. As I look around the room, I see colleagues in the Antiterrorism Training Assistance program who have traveled from Brunei, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Qatar, and Turkey. Seeing so many colleagues who have journeyed from far-off countries to be here reinforces to me the vital role that international cooperation plays in combating terrorism - something that I would like to talk about tonight.

But first, I thought it might be helpful to put our meeting – and the threats we face – in the context of the history that surrounds us here in Boston. The first battle in the American War of Independence took place about 20 kilometers from here, and the Boston area was the setting for many other skirmishes and battles in the American Revolution. To this day, Bostonians are renowned for their pride, independence, and advocacy of freedom.

Tragically, that sense of pride and independence was challenged when, a little over five years ago, two aircraft were hijacked shortly after they departed Logan Airport. The two planes that slammed into the World Trade Center buildings on 9/11 originated from Boston. Many of the victims aboard those planes were from the Boston area. Their deaths at the hands of terrorists have left friends and family members forever longing for their loved ones.

Employees of the U.S. Department of State know only too well the dangers of terrorism. Even before the tragic events of September 11, 2001, State Department facilities and employees around the world had been targets of terrorist attacks.

The Bureau of Diplomatic Security is the security and law enforcement organization within the U.S. Department of State. Our mission is to provide a secure environment for the conduct of diplomacy by protecting State Department employees, family members, facilities, and information. I have the honor of leading 36,000 dedicated men and women who work around the world, 24 hours a day, seven days a week to fulfill this mission. I have the greatest respect for them and for our law enforcement and security partners who provide crucial assistance to us in protecting American lives, facilities, ideas - and ideals. We could not do our work without the support of our partners in foreign law enforcement. We are deeply grateful for your assistance.

For many foreign governments and citizens, U.S. embassies and consulates are the first – and major - point of contact with the United States. As such, U.S. embassies and consulates are often the focus of threats by criminals and terrorists. To counter these threats, the Department of State established the Antiterrorism Training Assistance (ATA) program in 1983. The ATA program promotes education and training and helps us to forge close bonds of cooperation with police and security forces around the world. This program is a critical component in advancing the war on terrorism.

The scope of ATA’s training curriculum combined with the experience brought to the classroom by our partners - give participants an understanding of terrorism and a working knowledge of technologies and procedures to counter terrorist threats. The ATA program draws upon the expertise of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies in the United States to ensure that trainees are exposed to the most advanced principles and state-of-the-art security techniques.

Since 2000, ATA has conducted 1,473 courses and workshops, training 30,589 participants in 146 countries. This training has enabled many governments to counter terrorist threats in their countries. For example, participants from Kenya who graduated from ATA’s course on "Preventing, Interdicting and Investigating Acts of Terrorism" banned together to form a highly successful joint terrorism task force. In April of this year, the suspect in the 2002 Kikambala bombing was found guilty on three counts of illegal possession of firearms, ammunition, and explosives. The suspect’s arrest and conviction were the direct result of investigative work performed by an ATA-trained task force.

In Indonesia, ATA worked with the government to help establish and train an elite counterterrorism task force known as "Task Force 88." After going through extensive investigation and crisis-response team training, Task Force 88 is now one of the premier counterterrorism police units in Southeast Asia. Task Force 88 has an enviable record of conducting a high number of successful counter-terrorism investigations and operations. Establishing this unit was very timely. In the aftermath of the 2002 Bali bombing and the 2003 bombing of the Marriott hotel in Jakarta, Task Force 88 played a critical role in the subsequent investigation of these incidents, which led to the arrest of the perpetrators.

There are many more success stories of ATA-trained personnel and organizations. We still have a long way to go before meeting our common goal of eradicating the global threat of criminal activity and terrorism. It will require cooperation, coordination, and the sharing of information and ideas. Your presence here today - and the close working relationships that we have built between our services and our governments – prove that we have the commitment and dedication to defeat terrorism in all its forms.

Irish poet William Butler Yeats once wrote:

"Think of where man’s glory begins and ends, and say my glory was I had such friends".

On behalf of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, I’d like to say "thank you" for your courage, your commitment, and most importantly, your friendship.