Christine June
By Public Affairs Office
George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies

GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany (Jan. 18, 2019)  - The Marshall Center’s Program on Terrorism and Security Studies and Alumni Programs team are hosting a Global Counterterrorism Alumni Community of Interest (COI) Workshop, from Jan. 22 to 25 here.

The topic of: "Securing Borders against Travelling Terrorists - Challenges, Best Practices, and Recommendations."

The Global Counterterrorism Alumni COI Workshops are designed to support and engage the more than 2,000 alumni of the Marshall Center’s premier Program on Terrorism and Security Studies, as well as CT-focused alumni from other U.S. Department of Defense Regional Centers.

This is the eighth successive Counterterrorism Alumni Community of Interest event that started with an inaugural workshop in October 2010.

The workshop objectives are:

• Enhance the value of the network of CT-focused alumni from the Marshall Center and other U.S. Regional Centers by strengthening ties between alumni, encouraging the exchange of ideas and collaboration, and providing a way for partners and stakeholders to engage with, support and benefit from the alumni network.
• Discuss and exchange ideas, best practices and recommendations regarding the issues of how to deal with Securing Borders against Travelling Terrorists.   
• Use the knowledge and experience of Marshall Center and other DOD Regional Center graduates to contribute to the relevance and currency of subsequent Marshall Center PTSS courses.     

Held twice a year, PTSS is a four-week resident program that supports the Marshall Center's increasing emphasis on transnational threats and challenges.

The PTSS provides advanced professional education to those charged with understanding and then reducing the scope and capability of terrorism threats.

PTSS participants were originally from emerging democracies in Europe and Eurasia, NATO countries, and selected countries from within the Alliance's Mediterranean Dialogue. Recognizing the global nature of terrorism and its disdain for international borders, however, today's PTSS also attracts participants from all corners of the globe.

The PTSS builds a network of security professionals dedicated to the mission of combating terrorism by helping their countries to successfully cooperate in the global struggle against terrorism.

Objectives of PTSS are:

• Select participants to join the emergent transnational network of combating terrorism experts and practitioners.
• Develop and strengthen understanding of the ideologies and mechanisms of terrorism and the strategies for countering them.
• Improve the CT capabilities and capacities of partner nations.
• Cultivate an understanding of the potential tensions and trade-offs between enhancing operational effectiveness and respecting civil liberties and the rule of law.

Develop "intellectual interoperability" and mutual understanding about the transnational threat of terrorism and its potential evolution.