Country Reports on Terrorism 2012

possible AU-originated designations. The AUC participated in the July High‐Level Conference
on Victims of Terrorism, organized by the Global Counterterrorism Forum in Madrid, Spain.
The African Center for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACRST), an AU institution based
in Algiers, served as a forum for discussion, cooperation, and collaboration among AU member
states. The ACRST also served as the AU’s central institution to collect information, studies, and
analyses on terrorism and terrorist groups; and to develop counterterrorism training programs. In
April, the ACRST hosted 40 government officials, members of religious organizations, and
representatives of civil society from eight member states for a seminar on developing and
implementing counter‐radicalization and de‐radicalization programs. The AU's Special
Representative on Counterterrorism Cooperation and Director of ACSRT led assessments of
counterterrorism capacity in Uganda, Burundi, Djibouti, and Burkina Faso.
The AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) conducted counterterrorism operations against al-
Qa’ida and its affiliates, and al-Shabaab. AMISOM’s forces have pushed al-Shabaab out of
Mogadishu, as well as other territory in southern Somalia. AMISOM consists primarily of troops
from Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, and Djibouti.
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). In
2012, the United States worked closely with ASEAN and called for increased international
cooperation in countering terrorism and bolstering the capabilities of member countries to
address terrorism and other transnational criminal threats, as noted in the November 2012 Joint
Statement of the Fourth U.S-ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting. The United States and ASEAN engaged
on counterterrorism and other law enforcement capacity-building efforts at the annual Senior
Officials Meeting on Transnational Crime, held in September 2012.
The United States actively participated in counterterrorism-related activities of the 27-member
ARF, including the annual meeting on counterterrorism and transnational crime (CTTC) and
provided substantial support in capacity building through ARF institutions. The United States
has encouraged inter-and intra-forum information sharing and supported the CTTC work plan,
which focuses on illicit drugs; chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear terrorism; cybersecurity
and countering terrorist use of the internet; and counter-radicalization. The United
States, Australia, and the Philippines conducted a workshop on preparedness and response to a
biological incident in September 2012 and the United States also co-hosted with Vietnam an
ARF workshop on Proxy Actors in Cyberspace in March 2012.
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). In 2012, APEC reaffirmed its commitment to the
comprehensive Counterterrorism and Secure Trade Strategy, adopted in 2011, which endorsed
the principles of security, efficiency, and resilience; and advocated for risk-based approaches to
security challenges across its four cross-cutting areas of supply chains, travel, finance, and
infrastructure. The United States served as the 2011-2012 Chair of the APEC Counterterrorism
Task Force and directly led initiatives to build the capacity of APEC members to counter
terrorist financing, improve aviation and bus security, and counter terrorist threats against the
food supply. The United States also served as the Chair of the APEC Transportation Working
Group Sub-Group for Maritime Security and directly led initiatives to build APEC member
maritime and port security capacities through enhanced implementation of the International Ship
and Port Facility Security Code. Through actively facilitating engagement across APEC fora, the
United States was able to enhance overall effectiveness in such areas as trade recovery by
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