Asa Hutchinson, Under Secretary for Border and Transportation Security at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), discussed domestic security issues one year after the United States-led invasion of Iraq in conversation with VOA's Jim Bertel.
: As we mark the one-year anniversary of the Iraq war, I'm pleased to welcome Asa Hutchinson, Under Secretary for Border and Transportation Security at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Today does mark the beginning of the Iraq war, a war the President said was essential to the war on terrorism. Since the war's end, we've seen Iraq beset with terrorism, we've seen terrorist attacks in Spain, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and today France's foreign minister said the world is a more dangerous place because of the war in Iraq. Are we safer today than we were a year ago?
: "Well, I think absolutely we are. I mean, whenever you look at the attack on America in which 2,000 or more lives were taken in the World Trade Center attack, whenever you look at the fact that almost two-thirds of the al-Qaida leadership has been taken down, and whenever you look at the international response to terrorism, it has been very, very significant. When you look at the fact that Saddam Hussein is no longer in power, there has been a tremendous shift. The nations are working together in the area of homeland security, and the war against terrorism is a very important part of making our world safer."
: Earlier today the U.S. State Department said it is deeply concerned about the security of U.S. citizens overseas, adding that there are indications that al-Qaida might try to strike U.S. interests abroad. Will the domestic terror warning be raised as a result of this new threat?
: "There's no intention to raise the domestic threat level. We look at that intelligence every day, and thus far there has not been any indications that there is credible intelligence that the United States is going to be attacked or that would justify raising the threat level. We'll continue to watch it. And obviously what's happening overseas is causing everyone to be at a more heightened level of security naturally, but there's not any need to raise that threat level."
: I'd like to change direction now and talk about several initiatives that you've been involved with at the Department of Homeland Security. This week you announced a new effort to improve security along the border between the United States and Mexico. Is this to prevent illegal immigrants from entering or is this a move against terrorists and drug trafficking?
: "Well, our responsibility is not just to protect our borders from terrorists. That obviously is the highest priority for us - to keep America safe - but we also have a responsibility to assure the integrity of our immigration system and that our laws are enforced. And so when it comes to our border security, it is a concern about terrorists, but we also have really virtually a million illegal immigrants trying to enter every year, and we apprehend about that number. Arizona is really a frontier for us, in the sense that we have real challenges there, so we're trying to tighten the border security there in the Arizona area."
: Every year, tens of thousands of foreign students come to the United States to study. Obviously, in the wake of 9-11, more restrictions have been put into place. What steps do foreign students need to be aware of in order to assure that they're able to get into this country?
: "Well, first of all, even though we've naturally had to put more security measures in place, we continue to welcome our foreign students, our tourists, our business travelers, here to the United States. It's a very important part of our culture and interchange.
For the foreign students, they need to make sure that they apply adequately in advance so that we can do the checks that are necessary. We have an online system in which they have to be entered and the school has to confirm that they're actually going to attend. And then we facilitate their travel through. So we've done a lot to make sure they can come into the United States easily, with security. So we want to send the message that we certainly welcome those and that we'll do everything we can to make sure that they can come here safely and also without any difficulty."
: Earlier this week, the European Parliament expressed concern, and is even talking about taking legal action against the United States, over the collection of personal data of Europeans flying to the United States. They say the information can run afoul of the privacy laws in Europe. Are steps being taken to reach an agreement on this?