This master’s thesis analyses the impact of supranational counter-terrorism policies on national regulatory frameworks in selected countries: Germany, France, Austria, and Slovenia. It focuses on how supranational institutions – primarily the European Union – have shaped the regulatory environment for counter-terrorism and how member states have transposed these measures into their legal, institutional, and operational systems. Special attention is devoted to a comparative assessment of policy effectiveness and to showing practices that could enhance Slovenia’s national approach.
The research is based on qualitative comparative analysis, grounded in theoretical frameworks by Gupta (2012), Birkland (2019), and the policy cycle concept by Howlett and Cashore (2014). The applied methodology includes the analysis of legislative and strategic documents, review of secondary sources, case studies, and four expert interviews with national security professionals. The analysis focuses on six key areas of counter-terrorism policy: prevention of radicalization, protection and resilience, criminal prosecution, counter-terrorist financing, digital security, and foreign policy cooperation.
Findings indicate that the EU supranational framework significantly shapes national counter-terrorism strategies, with countries more affected by terrorist threats developing more extensive and centralized approaches. Slovenia has adopted key strategic documents, but further improvements are needed in operational coordination, legislative upgrades, and digital preparedness. The thesis identifies international best practices and provides recommendations for strengthening Slovenia’s strategy, enhancing national resilience, and deepening supranational cooperation.
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