DOJ, State Department Talk Measures to Fight Extremism at Norway Event
The Counterterrorism Law Enforcement Forum (CTLEF) held its second annual meeting this week in Oslo, Norway.
The mission of the forum is to discuss ways to counter racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism (REMVE), which is a rising global threat. Such attacks have occurred in Brazil, Germany, Slovakia, and the United States among others in the past year alone.
The forum is a joint effort between the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT), and the Department of State’s Bureau of Counterterrorism (State CT). This year’s meeting was cohosted by the government of Norway.
The gathering brought together law enforcement, prosecutors, counterterrorism experts, and other criminal justice officials from North America, South America, and Europe. A theme of the event was global cooperation.
“We have to be united in confronting domestic extremism within our countries. Collaboration and information sharing is essential to understanding and countering the threats that terrorist and violent extremist groups pose,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen of the National Security Division, as he addressed the conference.
Assistant Attorney General Olsen also said that international partnerships are “especially important where we observe transnational linkages in domestic violent extremism” noting that his office has seen “U.S.-based supporters of domestic terrorism attempt to establish links with likeminded foreign individuals and organizations.”
That theme of international cooperation was also noted by OPDAT Director Faye Ehrenstamm in her closing remarks. Director Ehrenstamm pointed out that participants shared many important insights, and that the “experiences exchanged and lessons learned at this year’s CTLEF illustrates the importance of working together.”
Russia’s Influence
Another major topic at the meeting was Russia’s influence. State Department Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism Ian Moss said Russia “continues to maintain a permissive environment for REMVE actors” noting that Russia is seeking to use these groups to gain leverage both inside and outside of Russia “for anti-democratic purposes and to destabilize communities and stoke ethnic conflict within our societies.”
Deputy Coordinator Moss also discussed how Russia is using REMVE groups to help Russian troops in Ukraine and how Moscow runs a campaign of disinformation, including promoting a false narrative that Ukraine is a “Nazi hotbed.”
In his speech, Deputy Coordinator Moss announced that the Bureau of Counterterrorism is awarding $2 million for projects to confront Russian disinformation.
DOJ says this year’s meeting built on the success of last year’s inaugural meeting which was held in Berlin and was a joint effort between the U.S. and Germany.
The next CTLEF meeting will be in Spring 2024.