Western responses to terrorism: A twenty‐five year balance sheet

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Abstract
This concluding essay surveys the kinds of responses that have been developed by Western nations over the past 25 years, both domestically and internationally, and also considers the kinds of responses that have not been adequately developed. Special attention is devoted to the military dimension, which has received considerable notice in recent years, and the propaganda dimension, never adequately addressed in the literature. The study also examines the effectiveness and democratic acceptability of the various response options: sometimes it is the effectiveness of certain options that can be questioned, while at other times it is the acceptability of a particular option for a democratic state that is more in doubt. Finally, the question to what extent the balance between acceptability and effectiveness has been achieved in various democratic states faced with varying forms and degrees of terrorism is addressed. What factors affect this balance and under what circumstances is one side of the equation favoured over the other?