Transatlantic convergence passenger data questions.

• Author: Chertoff, Michael
• Position: Homeland Security

A curious notion has emerged about how the United States has tried to navigate the seas of global security since the September 11 terrorist attacks. It depicts Washington as charting a solitary course characterized by premises, principles, and policies which diverge dramatically from those of other nations--notably its European allies.

This notion is false and also misleading about the trend of developments. I can attest to the realities based on my extensive interactions with my security counterparts in Europe and elsewhere. Differences in approach do exist, largely rooted in culture, geography and history. But their importance and weight have been exaggerated and are now declining in practice. What I've witnessed is a growing convergence among nations--especially among our transatlantic partners--in the battle against terrorism. I see a common recognition of the terrorist threat, a shared vision for an effective response to it and an evolving consensus on the specific steps that are needed now.

Most nations, including those of Europe, clearly grasp the danger that terrorism poses to their safety. More than that, they understand that the threat we face is not merely that of terrorism, which is simply a tactic, but one of ideology.

This was put well last year by Peter Clarke, who heads counter terrorism for Scotland Yard: "The current ... threat is of such a scale and intractability that we must not only defeat [those] who plot and carry out appalling acts of violence; we must also find a way of defeating the ideas that drive them."

When the Taliban were Osama Bin Laden's handmaidens in ruling Afghanistan, the outcome provided a revealing portrait of the kind of ideas the terrorists embrace. While in power, they destroyed the works of other religions. They tortured and murdered those who transgressed their rigid rules governing every detail of life. They compelled women to become the virtual property of their fathers or husbands, denying them the right to own property, get an education or otherwise determine their own destinies.

The willingness of such extremists to kill innocent Muslims in Afghanistan and around the world highlights the fact that they do not represent mainstream Islam, but a hideous distortion. Much like communism and fascism in the last century, this new zealotry has an ideology that is totalitarian in nature. The goal of its adherents is to dominate as many nations as possible, destroying their liberties and imposing on them a medieval, theocratic vision of how people must live.

Their dreams of domination may appear ridiculously grandiose, but our experience of fascism and communism instructs us never to underestimate the power of determined fanatics to fulfill their ambitions. Moreover, in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, the extremists have already been able to seize territory within failing states, creating their own statelets in which they rule. Equally important, they are aided by the latest technology and by the forces of globalization, which empower them to do the kinds of things that only large armies could once do. I can attest that this assessment of the threat we face is shared not only by transatlantic democracies but by leaders around the world.

Of course, it is one thing to agree broadly on the...