Benelux security ministers to deepen cooperation on crisis management

National security ministers from the Netherlands, Belgian and Luxembourg met this week to try and foster deeper cooperation on crisis and disaster management, following the recent catastrophic floods that wreaked havoc in all three nations and neighbouring Germany, and of course the Covid-19 pandemic. This meeting took place as the Federation of European Risk Management Associations (Ferma) hosted its Ferma Talks event focused on building greater resilience at corporate, national and pan-European levels. Contributions by senior officials from the EC, European Parliament and European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority at the Ferma event suggest there is a desire to work with the risk and insurance management community to build a more resilient European economy and society. Ferma will have been particularly enthused by the apparent willingness of the officials to reignite the debate about public private partnerships with potential national and EU financial backing, to help cope with such systemic risks that the private insurance sector cannot deal with alone. The meeting of the Benelux ministers focused on crisis and disaster management and provides further encouraging evidence of a political will to take this debate further and deliver some concrete solutions, sooner rather than later. The Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security explained in a statement: “Both the Covid-19 pandemic and the recent floods have had a major impact in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. All three countries faced and still face an unprecedented challenge.” The ministry said that since the start of the pandemic, cooperation between the countries has been strengthened and expanded. During the informal meeting in Belgium this week, minister Annelies Verlinden (internal affairs, Belgium), minister Taina Bofferding (internal affairs, Luxembourg) and minister Ferdinand Grapperhaus (justice and security, the Netherlands) stressed the importance of cooperation between the three neighbouring countries on crisis and disaster management, added the Dutch ministry. Before the meeting, the ministers paid a working visit to a Belgian aid station in a flood-affected area in Wallonia. “Fast and efficient cooperation and optimal cross-border crisis coordination require close contact between the crisis centres and disaster management authorities,” said the Dutch ministry. The ministers also spoke about developing a common interoperability platform for their national crisis centres. The three ministers stressed the importance of intensive cooperation and, where necessary, providing assistance to each other. “Last July's floods and the Covid pandemic reminded us that disasters don't stop at the borders. It is essential, in times of crisis, to take our responsibilities also at the international level and to show solidarity with our neighbouring countries. I was pleased to confirm with fellow ministers Grapperhaus and Bofferding our commitment to do our utmost together in order to provide the best possible assistance to victims in future emergencies as well,” said Verlinden after the meeting. “Today’s meeting was important to exchange lessons learnt on the recent disasters, which underlined again the importance of a strengthened cooperation in the domain of disaster risk reduction, to be able to cope with a dynamic risk landscape and strengthen the resilience of our countries and regions,” Bofferding added. “The recent floods, but also the coronavirus crisis, show how important it is that we work closely together and continue to do so. Our countries have long had very good agreements and cooperation to offer each other help and assistance in the event of a crisis or disaster. It was good to speak with colleagues Verlinden and Bofferding and to emphasise that again," Grapperhaus said.

Benelux security ministers to deepen cooperation on crisis management

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