For immediate release                                                                                                        25 May 2007

PRESS COMMUNIQUE - COMMUNIQUE PRESSE

NATO PARLIAMENTARIANS OBSERVE NATO DISASTER

RESPONSE EXERCISE IN CROATIA

Members of the Committee on the Civil Dimension of Security of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly participated as observers in NATOs disaster response exercise IDASSA 2007 in Zadar, Croatia on 22-24 May 2007.
 
The scenario of the exercise included a hostage-taking and contamination by biological agents at Zadar airport; a chemical spill in an industrial harbor; and a severe earthquake causing damage to the local infrastructure and displacements of populations.
 
The IDASSA exercise, organized jointly by NATOs Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response and Coordination Center (EADRCC) and the Croatian civil protection authorities, brought together over 1,000 participants from 21 countries, as well as over 100 observers.
 
This is the seventh international field exercise conducted by the EADRCC to test NATOs disaster response mechanism and promote greater interoperability among the national emergency services of Allied and partner countries.
 
The NATO PA delegation, led by Michael Clapham, Chairman of the Committee on the Civil Dimension of Security, was able to observe rescue operations at all major sites and witness first-hand the co-operation on the ground between civilian and military disaster response teams from NATO member and partner countries.
 
The Committee on the Civil Dimension of Security regularly discusses the challenges posed by international terrorism and natural disasters and the role of the Alliance in addressing these challenges in co-operation with other relevant organizations, such as, in particular, the United Nations and the European Union.
 
On 27 May, at the NATO PAs Spring Session in Madeira Portugal, the Committee will examine a report by Lord Jopling (United Kingdom) on the Protection of Critical Infrastructures. To view this report:
http://www.nato-pa.int/Default.asp?SHORTCUT=1165
 
For more information on NATOs IDASSA 2007 exercise, please visit:
http://www.nato.int/eadrcc/2007/05-idassa/index.htm

For further information, please contact

 e-mail: Press@nato-pa.int

NATO Parliamentary Assembly

Place du Petit Sablon 3, 1000 Brussels, Belgium

Tél: (32) 2 513 28 65 | Fax: (32) 2 514 18 47 |

website: http:// www.nato-pa.int |

Background

 The NATO Parliamentary Assembly, founded in 1955 with a Brussels-based secretariat,

brings together 248 national parliamentarians from the 26 NATO countries.

In addition, 15 associate delegations from Central and Eastern Europe, Ukraine and Russia;

4 Mediterranean Associate delegations: Morocco, Algeria, Jordan, Israel

and 7 Parliamentary Observer delegations participate in Assembly activities and meetings.