Continuing the fight against terrorism

Abstract

The callous bombing of Pan Am flight 103 right before Christmas was a terrible international tragedy. The victims were not only the passengers and crew of flight 103 and the townspeople of Lockerbie but their relatives and friends, who were also touched by this horrible act. All of these innocent people were the victims of an apparent act of terrorism. Right now we are working closely with the British and West German governments in gathering information and following leads. We will follow every lead until we have answers. The Pan Am investigation has become the largest police manhunt in the history of the world. We have mobilized all the resources at our government's command. Paralleling the police effort, we have approached other governments through diplomatic and intelligence channels requesting their assistance. We are making every effort to find the murderers of 270 people and bring them to justice. Because this investigation will, it is hoped, eventually lead to a trial for the murderers, I cannot discuss the details of our investigation. But I can say that, although it may take time, I am confident that we will catch the perpetrators, bring them to trial, and demonstrate that the murder of innocent people will not be tolerated. Pan Am 103's destruction, along with well over 800 terrorist incidents in 1988, demonstrates that terrorism still commands a major place on the international agenda. It is a problem which requires concerted, consistent action if we are to diminish its status in world affairs. In the following pages, I discuss the U.S. government's response to the threat of international terrorism and describe the government's counterterrorism policy in the 1980s and the nearand long-term threats perceived for the 1990s.