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Illustration by the European Knowledge Network
10 Mar 2026

CTIF leaders participate in EU conference on resilience in the face of geopolitical crisis, hybrid threats, cyberattacks and critical infrastructure stress

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Europe is facing a new risk paradigm. As the current geopolitical crisis in Iran demonstrates, external conflicts rapidly generate cascades of vulnerabilities within our borders, from hybrid threats and cyberattacks to critical infrastructure stress. 

Whether facing these complex geopolitical shocks or extreme weather events, our collective resilience is currently tested by a "double fracture" in information sharing:

• The anticipation gap: The disconnect between risk data (intelligence) and decision-makers.

• The coordination gap: The lack of shared situational awareness between first responders on the ground.

This conference will gather the key operational actors needed to bridge this divide and build a true European information continuum.

 

Time and Location:

Wednesday, 18 March 2026 | 15:00 – 17:00 CET

Room 6Q1, ANTALL Building, European Parliament, Brussels

 

Event organised by MEP Pascal Arimont in partnership with

 

REGISTER HERE

 

Programme:

Opening and Welcome

15:00 - 15:05 | Host: MEP Pascal Arimont (ENVI; REGI; EMPL; Co-Chair of the European Parliament Intergroup on Resilience, Disaster Management and Civil Protection).

 

15:05 - 15:15 | Institutional Welcome: DG ECHO.

 

15:15 - 16:05 | Roundtable 1: Anticipating to better prepare: Towards a European analysis of shared risk

Moderator: MEP Pascal Arimont

 

Panellists:

Peter Salamon, Head of Copernicus Emergency Management Service (CEMS), Joint Research Center, European Commission.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.

Representative from a Member State Civil Protection Authority (TBC)

 

16:05 - 16:15 | Industrial keynote speech, building on Simon Marsol, CTO Sopra Steria Defence, Security, and Space (DS2): The digital continuum to bridge the gap between anticipation and response

 

16:15 - 16:55 | Roundtable 2: Coordinating to better respond: Doctrine, operational needs and technological capabilities

 

Panellists:

• Michela Matuella, Director, Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC), DG ECHO.

Christophe Marchal, Vice-President of the International Association of Fire Services (CTIF) and of the French Firefighters' Federation (FNSPF).

• Panayiotis Liassides, Assistant Director General for Civil Protection, Republic of Cyprus.

 

16:55 - 17:00 | Event Closing

 

Hosted by:

MEP Pascal Arimont (EPP, BE)

 

[Link to Register](https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=ZirL6kslFkycptqTS3QUD7LnEVb…)