It is, during the press conference on Tuesday in The Hague, it will emphasize “the greatest logistics and security operation ever”. On 24 and 25 June, the Netherlands hosts the NATO summit and will receive, among others, the government leaders of the 32 NATO allies and those of partner countries. The Hofstad receives 45 international government leaders, 45 ministers of Foreign Affairs and 45 Ministers of Defense, who meet in the World Forum on Johan de Wittlaan.
In addition, six thousand delegation members, five hundred prominent guests and an estimated two thousand journalists from home and abroad will visit the meeting.
In the case of calamities, additional police assistance can be used from abroad
That the Netherlands is organizing the event is, according to the mayor Jan van Zanen in The Hague, an honor, but also a huge responsibility. ” To steer the top in the right direction, roads and the airspace are closed and a special safety zone applies to the sea. For the air defense, Dutch F-35s and Apache fight helicopters are ready, over the North Sea races naval ships of NATO.
In order to be able to guarantee safety on land, 27,000 agents – almost half of the national police – are raised. This police force receives assistance from five thousand soldiers and five thousand Marechaussees from the Ministry of Defense. Moreover, an appeal is made to police forces from across the border, for the time being only for specialists such as explosive experts and dog conductors.
In the event of calamities, as National Police Commander Willem Woelders made clear on Tuesday, the police aid can be expanded from abroad. But even without foreign servants, police care throughout the Netherlands is guaranteed during the top, he assured: “The teams are on strength, and if a declaration has to be made, that can be arranged.”
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Salvation weather
The Netherlands has experience with organizing international tops. Such as the Nuclear Security Summit of 2014, also in The Hague. The Netherlands also laid the ear to listen to countries that arranged earlier NATO tops, said Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg, the National Coordinator of Terrorism and Security (NCTV). According to the NCTV analysis, various scenarios, ranging from a terrorist attack, is taken into account, cyber attack to disrupting emergency weather. To prevent hackers from paralyzing the top, backup systems is provided.
Special attention receives the chance of large -scale distribution of disinformation. According to Aalbersberg, during the two previous NATO tops it turned out that foreign actors had spread fake news. The NCTV has therefore appointed specialists to monitor disinformation, so that it can be ‘debated’ on time, the coordinator says.
The starting point of the safety operation is ‘Risco management, non-risk exclusion’, according to the NCTV
Dutch government services have been preparing at the top for almost a year. There is intensive practice with scenarios. But guarantee that nothing can go wrong, Aalbersberg did not want. The starting point of the safety operation is “risk management, non-risk exclusion,” according to the NCTV. If the security situation deteriorates, ‘extra steps’ can be taken.
The NATO summit is accompanied by nuisance anyway. The surroundings of the World Forum in the Statenkwartier in The Hague will be a no-goarea for visitors, the roads to Schiphol will be dropped off for the long convoys of high-quality workers; Passengers at Schiphol will probably have to deal with major delays. In The Hague, risk areas are designated in which the police can search cars and people can search.
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Malieveld
Mayor Jan van Zanen emphasized that social and economic traffic is disrupted as little as possible. “Not everywhere are fences. We want to take care of customization, so that life in beautiful The Hague can continue as usual as much as possible.” You can also demonstrate, at special locations at “visual and hearing distance” of the World Forum. Or else on the Malieveld.
According to Van Zanen, the Nuclear Safety Stop of 2014 has been learned. “It is not that everything has to be stricter, it is possible here and there a little less.” This time, bathers can just keep going into the water during the top – up to five hundred meters off the coast. “I insisted on that,” said Van Zanen. “We must not forget that it is summer then.”
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