The European Union Police Services Training (EUPST) forms part of a wide-ranging European Union project for the uniform training of European Police Services, as well as the standardisation and integration of techniques, methods, and procedures, to create a common system for action in deployment in crisis situations.

In the framework of the European Union Police Services Training II (EUPST II) 2015-2018, and financed by the European Commission, from 13 to 24 March 2017 the Spanish Guardia Civil, in collaboration with the Portuguese National Republican Guard, organized the Training in Civil Crisis Management Exercise, a practical exercise comprising training workshops and practical incident resolution scenarios.

The exercise was attended by 200 police officers from 13 European countries (Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Spain, and the United Kingdom), as well as 11 countries from the American and African continents (Algeria, Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique,  Sâo Tomé and Principe, and Senegal).

The European Gendarmerie Force contributed to the exercise with the expertise of EUROGENDFOR’s Chief of Operations Lieutenant Colonel Gabriel OANTA as Chief of Staff of the exercise, Captain ManuelSACCHETTO as head of the Plans Office, and Warrant Officer Marco TUPINIas Operations Room operator.

From left to right, Captain Manuel SACCHETTO, Lieutenant Colonel Gabriel OANTA, and Warrant Officer Marco TUPINI

The practical part of the EUPST II exercise simulated a scenario where an international contingent, under the European Union umbrella, was deployed in an imaginary country coming out of an armed conflict situation. The transition from armed conflict to peace involves a gap in political leadership and social instability, which is fertile ground for incidents that the international contingent had to resolve putting into work the theoretical classes given during the two weeks that the exercise lasted.

The EUROGENDFOR staff at work coordinating an incident resolution.

From left to right, Lieutenant Colonel Gabriel OANTA with Colonel of the Italian Carabinieri Patrizio LA SPADA, head of the exercise 

The Spanish Minister of the Interior, Juan Antonio ZOIDO, recalled during his closing ceremony speech that the aim of this international exercise is to “unify procedures and standardise capabilities to develop more successful civil and military crisis management missions that can be carried out under a European Union mandate“. The Minister also stressed that “experience tells us that when we work together we are more effective; and the more of us that join this task, the better it will be for all“. He later thanked all the police forces taking part in the exercise, highlighting that “involving so many and such diverse countries, organisations and institutions for two weeks has been rewarded by a professional enrichment demonstrated in the impressive live exercise you have organised… We are today a little stronger in the face of current threats“.

Brigadier General Philippe RIO, Commander of the European Gendarmerie Force attended the closing ceremony, as well as many other local and international authorities.

From left to right, Warrant Officer Marco TUPINI, Brigadier General Philippe RIO, Lieutenant Colonel Gabriel OANTA, and Captain Manuel SACCHETTO