C 310/6
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
16.8.2022
28.
The EU continued to support the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism (GICNT) and its mission to strengthen global capacity to prevent, detect, and respond to nuclear terrorism.
The EU and its Member States are actively involved in the work of the GICNT in all areas: nuclear detection, nuclear forensics, and response and mitigation.
29.
The EU has Practical Arrangements signed in 2013 with the IAEA for Cooperation on Nuclear Security Technical Issues, which aim at increasing coordination of training and capacity building activities for promoting and implementing sustainable Nuclear Security Culture practices, among other objectives.
30.
The EU Nuclear Security Training Centre for the detection and response to illicit acts involving nuclear and other radioactive materials (EUSECTRA) has been fully operational since 2013 for the benefit of European Union Member States and partner countries, among them several GICNT members.
The Centre is operated by the JRC at its sites in Karlsruhe (Germany) and Ispra (Italy), in close cooperation with other international initiatives promoted by the IAEA and several GICNT partner countries.
The Centre is also used for practical exercises, mainly related to countering nuclear smuggling.
EUSECTRA is active in addressing the training needs of the EU Member States and EU partners, including through coordinated trainings for Member States’ delegates in customs and law enforcement, already implemented and planned for 2019-2022 (in direct collaboration with EC DG HOME and EC DG TAXUD).
EUSECTRA reinforces the infrastructure used to conduct the training, develops virtual learning tools and provides an assessment of equipment performance upon request by EU Member States.
The pandemic has restrained physical trainings.
A hybrid approach has been developed using modern means, focussing on field exercises with the remote use of instruments and the real-life use of nuclear and radioactive materials to sustain the efforts against Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN)-related threats and nuclear terrorism.
31.
The European Commission and the EU Member States continued their nuclear forensics activities on the characterisation of intercepted nuclear material, using state-of-the-art nuclear forensic capabilities at the JRC site in Karlsruhe, Germany.
32.
JRC and ESARDA provided substantial input to the book on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Verification — Innovative Systems Concepts, released in 2020.
33.
The European Commission continued building the capacity of EU Member States to test and evaluate the performance of equipment used to detect the illicit trafficking of nuclear and radioactive materials through its ITRAP+10 Phase II programme, which has led to further harmonisation and standardisation, and contributed substantially to international standards.
34.
The European Commission continues to play a major role within the Border Monitoring Working Group (BMWG) for nuclear security.
It co-chairs both the BMWG and its two sub groups on Detection Technologies and Capacity Building.
35.
The European Commission continued its research on the development of a new Non-Destructive Assay technique, namely the delayed gamma spectrometry for the verification of nuclear material signatures in collaboration with the IAEA.
A Joint Action was submitted under the Support Programme to the IAEA.
36.
In 2020, the European Commission’s DG TAXUD, supported by JRC and EUSECTRA, launched an interactive eLearning Programme to support customs officers in learning about radioactive and nuclear border control.
The basic module demonstrates customs officers’ important role in detecting nuclear and radioactive materials, making them aware of risks and threats, along with a basic introduction to relevant materials, equipment and processes.
The advanced module explores the same topics in more detail.
Both courses include realistic scenarios, involving seaports, airports, railways, and land borders, in which course participants can test their decision-making.
Collaboration between DG TAXUD and the JRC has built greater synergies between Member States’ customs administrations.
The trainings provided at the EUSECTRA centre will serve as platform for national experts to exchange best nuclear security practices in border protection, thus contributing to the development of harmonised procedures.
This is part of a drive to combat nuclear trafficking collaboratively and to facilitate trade through customs checkpoints.
Ultimately, the goal is to prevent individuals from gaining access to harmful materials by promoting a common nuclear security culture.