Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like to start by congratulating AIRPOL for convening this Congress, and to thank the government of Cyprus, and the Cyprus Police, for this highly topical discussion:
We live in volatile and unpredictable times.
Our neighbourhood is torn apart by conflicts spilling across borders.
Massive population movements and 60 million refugees around the globe call on us to live up to our legal and moral obligations – the fundamental values of our Union.
Our cybersecurity is tested almost on a daily basis.
Our own citizens are becoming radicalised to terrorism and attack innocent people in our cities.
Nationalism and populism are on the rise.
Solidarity between us has become harder to ensure.
Security is unsurprisingly therefore one of the top concerns of our citizens.
They are concerned about terrorism and the risks to their security – but equally – they do not wish to see their freedoms limited, or their mobility impeded.
Aviation security lies at the very heart of this.
This year, as the European Union marks 60 years of – peace, – stability and – prosperity on the European continent, we cannot take any of these achievements for granted.
I am thankful for the opportunity to be with you here today, to address, for the first time,
the Congress of EU airport police chiefs on aviation security – an issue that is always high on the European, and the global security agenda.
AIRPOL members play a crucial role in securing not only our aviation, but also our external EU borders.
This is a round-the-clock commitment and service to the security of our Union, which I value highly.
After the 2012 Burgas Airport attack, we worked together to develop the first EU guidance on the so-called soft targets.
This resulted in the AIRPOL Handbook on Soft Target Protection, which I had the pleasure of signing as soon as I took office as European Commissioner.
It showed how airports are at the forefront of much of our security work.
And this core security work, is a perfect continuum, with all the work we are doing together to strengthen the management of our external borders.
It is our external borders which are the nexus of our efforts to manage the two parallel crises on security and migration, while at the same time safeguarding the mobility of our citizens.
Our citizens want to feel safe and secure – but not at the expense of their mobility.=
The aviation security context, and the work of airport security authorities, exemplifies perfectly this objective.
From a security perspective, Europe has become a single space.
Terrorism knows no borders.
In our free movement area, fragmentation in our security efforts makes us all equally vulnerable.
Strong external borders are the essence of security inside our area of free movement.
And our area of free movement can only be ensured, if our external perimeter is secure enough from outside threats.
That is why, since last year, we have been working to achieve a paradigm shift in our security cooperation in Europe: a genuine and effective Security Union.
To change the security taboos of the past, where security stopped at national borders.
To convince the deep state, that security fragmentation makes us all vulnerable.
To make everyone understand, that it is only – through collective EU action, – through trust, unity and cooperation that we can address these threats.
This applies of course to our actions across the security field, but especially in the area of aviation security.
And AIRPOL plays its own role here by sharing – information, – best practice, and – operational guidance.
Aviation security calls for our constant vigilance, and for strategic anticipation at all levels to stay ahead of the threat.
We have for example identified gaps in our information systems.
We have made proposals to strengthen existing information systems (such as the Schengen Information System for example);
We adopted new systems where required (such as the European Passenger Name Records framework);
And, we have made proposals for future systems to fill a gap that was identified (such as ETIAS – the European ESTA, and the EU Entry-Exit System).
All these systems are vital for aviation security.
We want to know who comes in, from where, for which reason – and if there are any security risks.
It’s not just about creating more information systems.
We also need to make sure that these systems talk to each other, that they are connected.
Our border guards and police officers should all have the right information, at the right time.
We want all the border management, migration and security data systems at EU level to be interoperable.
One month from now, we will put proposals on the table to achieve this goal.
Airports are a crucial part of the equation here as they are entry points into the Union.
They are key points of control, where border guards and security officers need to have all the necessary information at their fingerprints to make a decision:
Is this person really the person he says he is?
Does this person pose an irregular migration risk?
Is this person a potential threat to the Union or perhaps a returning terrorist foreign fighter?
Even with better information systems however, the threats will not go away.
Our aviation will always be a target for terrorist attacks.
As controlled and secure as airports may be, recent attacks have shown how easy it can be for a terrorist to attack soft targets and mass events.
Terrorists are always looking for ways to innovate. Hiding explosives in tablets was one of the most recent threats.
It comes in the footsteps of – the shoe bombs, – the liquid bombs, – the underwear bombs,
– the printer bombs and – the baggage bombs.
We need to stay ahead of this innovation curve – on policing, but also – on detection technology, – on research and – on expertise.
Just two weeks ago, we announced 1 billion euro of Horizon 2020 funding for security research in the next two years.
Parts of it will be on aviation security, and we will push for concrete, usable outcomes that can make a difference on the ground.
What we can also do from Brussels to facilitate your work in this area is to create networks that bring you all together, such as AIRPOL.
To guide you, and to connect you to other authorities from across Europe that face similar challenges.
To focus on where the major vulnerabilities are.
To assess them, and steer our discussion towards solutions.
In mid-October, we also presented an EU-wide Action Plan to support our Member States in protecting public spaces.
We made 100 million euro available in funding over the next year to help you build the necessary infrastructure for protecting our citizens in public spaces.
With AIRPOL, we also brought together public authorities responsible for transport and other public areas to exchange information and best practices to enhance security.
A major issue here is the threat from insiders.
Airport staff that may become radicalised.
Insiders that may be connected to extremist elements.
Our vetting standards for airports and other key staff need to be reviewed at EU level.
We have had several workshops at EU level on insider threats this year, and an awareness raising campaign with the transport and security providers.
Soon we will have a first meeting of a new Private-Public Forum.
It will bring together the operators of different types of public spaces, Including – airports, – railway stations, – hotels, and – shopping malls to discuss how we can improve protection.
Practitioners networks such as AIRPOL will play an important role here.
Our focus should be on pragmatic and risk-based measures, where EU cooperation can make a real difference.
We know for example that terrorist groups are experimenting with new tools like drones.
Are our law enforcement authorities properly trained to handle this new challenge?
Do we have the right equipment across the Union to deter and counter the threat?
Through our law enforcement networks, such as AIRPOL, we are actively promoting innovative threat detection equipment, and supporting operational trials with security services using this equipment.
We know of course that we are not alone in dealing with this threat.
Global cooperation is key. Europe is not an island.
The recent plot against aviation in Australia show the truly global scale of the threat.
The UN Security Council has taken clear positions on the importance of this cooperation and assistance for capacity building to manage risks.
Raising the level of protection against different threats at EU airports is critical, but it is only a part of the solution.
EU citizens must have the same level of protection on the flight back to EU as they have received on the departure from EU.
Capacity building is a global task.
We are of course fully engaged multilaterally through the United Nations and the International Civil Aviation Organization.
What is even more critical, is the engagement and the intelligence sharing with strategic partners, such as the United States.
The best example here is our cooperation on the threat from personal electronics on flights.
The US banned laptops from countries in the Middle East.
It was widely rumoured that Europe was next.
That is when we took the initiative to open a frank and open channel of communication with our American partners.
On the basis of trust and friendship, with my then US counterpart, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, we acknowledged that the threat we face is common.
We agreed on the need to raise the bar of aviation security globally.
By sharing and combining all the information we both had, we arried to a 10-point action list, of common measures on detection and risk-mitigation in Europe, and around the globe.
Global cooperation, on global issues such as aviation security, can produce global solutions.
Last July, I addressed the Munich Aviation Security Conference, where this framework for global cooperation was the main topic.
I suggested that the Munich Aviation Security Conference becomes an institutionalised and regular event – precisely to deepen and further this global cooperation.
It is my political conviction, that aviation security should be put at the top of the global agenda – where the EU and global stakeholders can cooperate on these greatly important issues.
Next week, I will be in Washington for our EU-US Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial meeting, and our joint efforts on aviation security will again be on our agenda.
In the last two years, progress has been made.
We have learnt hard lessons, but today, we are much better equipped to counter threats against aviation than we were at any time before.
But the threat to our aviation will not go away.
We know that our geopolitical context will not change in the near future.
We also know that terrorists will not stop innovating.
To address today’s security challenges, we need to look at security holistically.
Aviation security is a silver thread connecting our work
– on counter-terrorism,
– on border management,
– on radicalisation,
– on information systems,
– on security research,
– and elsewhere.
A lot remains to be done to protect our citizens against attacks.
For this to happen, experts, law enforcement practitioners, security authorities and industry all need to work together towards this clear goal.
AIRPOL will continue to play a crucial role in connecting all these elements.
This threat is against all of us.
And only collectively can we address it: with a strong Security Union protecting our citizens at home, and a global security role for Europe in the world.
Thank you.