The European Commission is calling on European citizens to stockpile emergency supplies for at least three 24-hour periods, to be prepared in the event of war, natural disaster or other crisis.
The Commission's proposal will be officially presented today, as the responsible commissioner Aja Labib told AFP, and is part of the European Union's strategic preparedness framework, which also includes greater cooperation between citizens and armed forces, since the involvement of the army is deemed necessary to address future risks and threats. At the same time, member states, such as France, are taking their own measures.
In practice, the Commission wants every European citizen to be equipped with bottled water, energy bars, flashlights and more to survive the first critical 72 hours.
"Knowing what to do in case of danger under different scenarios is also a way to prevent panic," said the Commission's crisis management commissioner, Labib, recalling how supermarket shelves were emptied of toilet paper in the early days of the pandemic.
What does the survival kit recommended by the Commission include?
The Commission will urge households to stock up on a dozen essential items, including matches and identity documents in a waterproof case, as part of their “survival kit”. The EU also wants to promote a “national preparedness day” – aimed at ensuring that member states are on track to implement the plans. “All of this is in addition to national strategies,” said Labib. She added that the Commission’s move is about “better coordination and support for member states in their national strategies”.
The “preparedness” strategy, and especially the survival kit, is based on the recommendations of a report presented to the European Commission late last year by former Finnish President Sauli Niinisto. It also draws inspiration from the example of Nordic countries, as Finland, Sweden and Denmark have stepped up efforts to prepare households for the possibility of a future crisis or conflict as Russia’s war in Ukraine rages into its third year.
In a letter to the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, three members of the centrist Renew group in the European Parliament urged the Commission to go a step further by sending every household in the Union a handbook on preparing for “various crises, from potential conflicts to climate disasters, pandemics and cyber threats.”
Source: iefimerida.gr
