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EU Story 06-39
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EU tests capacity to react to major
terror attack By Mark Beunderman EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU and its member states have simulated a near-simultaneous terrorist attack in five EU cities, with the test revealing that there is a "need for improvement in the use of communication technology." The aim of the exercise, conducted on Monday (30 October) was to "verify the joint capacity of the council [EU member states] and the [European] Commission to react quickly and efficiently to a major crisis," an EU statement after the simulation said. EU officials declined to reveal the five cities involved in the exercise but added the simulated attacks were "similar" to those on 11 September 2001 in the US, involving "planes." "It is underscored that the exercise's scenario was not based on any existent information on the possibility of such attacks taking place, and was a purely fictitious description of events," the press statement said. The institutions tested knew that the simulation would take place "in the last five days of October" – but the exact date was only known to the planners of the exercise in order to keep the surprise effect. The EU's recently approved Emergency and Crisis Coordination Arrangements (CCA), designed to react to this type of situations, generally functioned well, the test revealed. It pointed to "the adequacy of the CCA structures" as well as "the good level of knowledge among participants of the CCA structures and procedures." One official said however that "there is a need for closer co-operation between the commission and the council in assessing the needs regarding things like the evacuation of the injured," however. The "need for improvement in the use of communication technology" was also demonstrated in the simulation, which also involved COREPER – the body of member states' ambassadors in Brussels. CCAEX06, the exercise's code name, started at 13h30 Brussels time with a number of "fictitious media inputs" that continued throughout the afternoon. It ended at 20.00. Source |
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