EU looks to curb US role in tracking terrorist funds

Brussels: In search of an acceptable solution to a long running problem, the European Commission has put forward fresh proposals for tracking the finances of terrorists in Europe. These proposals are aimed at ending the primary role of the United States in these efforts.

EU parliamentarians have long objected to an existing programme that sends information on financial transactions in bulk to the United States where authorities sift through the material to track movement of terror-related funding.

The European Union needed ''to find a European solution for extracting the requested data on European soil,'' said Cecilia Malmström, the EU commissioner for home affairs.

Ms. Malmström's proposals are intended to establish a parallel system that would share tips with the United States and other powers. These proposals would meet objections that financial tracking jeopardizes European standards of privacy.

Any European system ''would need to fully respect fundamental rights, and in particular ensure a high level of data protection,'' said Ms. Malmström.

A key objective would be ''limiting the amount of personal data transferred to the US,'' said a statement issued by Ms. Malmström's department.