EU seeks to beef up defences against dirty-bomb attacks

(BRUSSELS) - The European Commission unveiled Wednesday proposals to boost the continent's defences against the "most frightening scenario" of bio-terrorism or a dirty bomb attack.

"Terrorist groups acquiring weapons of mass destruction, including CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear) materials is the most frightening scenario," said EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot.

The proposals, underpinned by an EU action plan, are aimed at preventing criminals from getting access to such materials, detecting them before they are misused and responding quickly and efficiently when an attack occurs.

They include steps to protect potentially dangerous materials and reduce any risk they might be lost, boost the exchange on data between the 27 nations on security issues and train emergency workers to save lives and limit damage.

It would tie nations into an exchange of best practice, harmonise the way they assess the risks, and raise awareness in countries that have not suffered the kind of attacks seen in Britain and Spain in 2005 and 2004.

An EU expert said the likelihood of such a strike is small, with the highest threat being posed by bio-terrorism.

"The risks are not that big because it's very difficult to prepare and weaponise these sorts of materials in most cases," he told reporters on condition of anonymity.

"The main risks that experts see is from biological attack," the expert said, referring to a US assessment of a 50 percent chance of a biological attack within the next five years.

But Barrot warned: "The seriousness of the potential consequences for our societies is such that we cannot be complacent."

In 1995, a sarin gas attack on a Tokyo underground railway killed 12 people and injured thousands. In a series of attacks in the United States in 2001, 17 people were exposed to deadly anthrax spores.

One of Europe's weak points remains the lack of stocks of vaccines, as the outbreaks of bird and swine flu in recent years have demonstrated, and no agreement has yet been reached between the 27 EU nations on stockpiling.

The expert said it was also important to develop an early warning system, and particularly one that would mobilise law enforcement agencies more effectively.

He also pointed out wide differences between national response plans in the event of any attack.

"Some member states are better prepared than others, that's quite clear. A member state that has had an experience with a terrorist attack is of course going to take the threat a little bit more seriously," he said.

The proposals involve more than 130 measures, many of them preparatory action, and the commission hopes they can be introduced over the next three years.

EU proposal for a new policy package 
on chemical, biological, radiological 
and nuclear (CBRN) security - briefing