Europol, the European Police Office, was created by the member states of the European Union as the central hub for the exchange and analysis of law enforcement information. Its existence is proof that the cooperation between member states in creating a single area of freedom, security and justice has reached a new multilateral level. Working in close cooperation with the member states, Europol is in a unique position to provide an overview of the security situation in the European Union. Two annual public awareness reports are produced by Europol: the EU Organised Crime Threat Assessment (OCTA) and the Terrorism Situation and Trend Report (TE-SAT). Both have become important awareness tools for decision makers at European level., The TE-SAT is a forward-looking document. Its aim is not only to describe the situation in the European Union regarding terrorism and related phenomena, but also to identify trends. For the first time since the adoption of a new methodology in 2006, TE-SAT 2008 offers the possibility to compare the findings of one year with those of the previous year. As an annual product, the TE-SAT is still in its infancy. Nevertheless, awareness in the member states about the importance of such a tool is growing. It is my pleasure to note that contributions for TE-SAT2008 have increased significantly in quantity and quality. I would like to thank the member states and Eurojust for their continuing commitment and cooperation., Terrorism manifests itself in a variety of ways and has been an issue in the EU for many years. The impact of terrorist attacks became obvious again in 2007 with the murder of two Spanish police officers in France by the Basque separatist terrorist group ETA. Our thoughts are with their families. The overall threat to the member states from terrorism remains serious, as demonstrated by the failed attacks in London and Glasgow and the disrupted plots in Germany and Denmark., The transnational nature of this threat requires an EU-wide response. In order to effectively meet the challenge of counter-terrorism in the EU, the member states must continue to develop robust cooperation and coordination networks to facilitate information exchange and to assist in our understanding of the challenges that face us.