Measures which sought to harmonise extradition rules across EU member states date from the mid-1990s when the EU instituted two treaties under the Maastricht Treaty which sought to streamline existing extradition procedures under the European Convention on Extradition . In 1999 the European Council further proposed to abolish formal extradition procedures for sentenced persons . However it was not until the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks in the United States that much more far-reaching proposals were mooted . While originally proposed as an anti-terrorist measure the European Arrest Warrant soon became applicable to a wide range of ordinary crimes . The political decision to adopt the EAW legislation was made at the Laeken European Council in December 2001 , the text being finally agreed in June of the following year
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
European Arrest Warrant