The European Commission has announced an unprecedented change in the approach to security, launching a strategy “The Union of Preparedness”. This historical programme departs from a model in which only state institutions are liable for security. Instead, Brussels requires all household in the European Union, including Poland, to prepare actively for crisis situations. The main pillar of the fresh strategy is the advice that each household gather sufficient food, water and medicines for a minimum of 72 hours. This is simply a fundamental change that shifts any of the work for the endurance of the first, most hard days of the crisis straight to citizens.
This decision is simply a consequence to a increasing list of threats that have affected the continent in fresh years. Analysts in Brussels have found that conventional consequence systems may not be adequate in the face of pandemics, utmost weather phenomena, hybrid warfare or mass cyber attacks. The aim of the Union of Preparedness is not to make panic, but to build social resilience and guarantee that 450 million Europeans can last a crucial period of time on their own before organised state aid comes.
Why did Brussels make specified a decision? A increasing Hazard List
The introduction of the Union of Preparedness is not accidental. This is simply a direct consequence to a series of crises that exposed the weaknesses of European safety systems. COVID-19 pandemic She brutally showed how fragile global supply chains are. Even the EU's richest countries have been faced with a deficiency of basic products, masks or medicines, which has made it clear to the decision-makers how dependent we are on uninterrupted supplies.
Another origin is increasing climate change. The devastating floods in Germany and Belgium, the catastrophic fires in Greece and Spain, and the heat waves paralyzing full regions have proved that natural forces can cut millions of people off from basic services within hours. But the turning point was Russian invasion of Ukraine. The war at EU borders, coupled with an unprecedented scale of cyber attacks on critical infrastructure, sabotage and disinformation, has fundamentally changed safety perceptions. The Commission experts indicate that the aim of these actions is not only to destruct but to undermine citizens' assurance in the state.
Specific guidelines for Poles. What must be included in the ‘iron stock’?
The “Union of Preparedness” strategy precisely determines what should be included in the home endurance kit for 72 hours. This period was calculated as a critical time during which emergency services may be overloaded and the average functioning of shops, pharmacies and transport suspended. Each household should prepare:
- Water: Minimum 3 litres per individual per day. For a household of four, this means a supply of at least 36 litres of bottled water for both drinking and hygiene purposes.
- Food: Long word products that do not require cooking or cooling. Canned meat and fish, dry legume seeds, pasta, groats, rice, biscuits, energy bars, nuts and dried fruit are recommended.
- First-aid kit: In addition to standard dressing materials, it must contain painkillers, antipyretics and, crucially, supply of medicines taken permanently (e. g. hypertension, diabetes, heart disease).
- Additional equipment: A battery radio (or crank/solar) is needed to receive messages, a flashlight with a battery supply, candles, matches, powerbank, basic tools and copies of crucial documents.
Preparing specified a set is not a one-time effort. Stocks should be checked regularly for expiration dates and supplemented to be always ready for use.
Shocking data. Half of Europeans will not last 3 days without deliveries
The alarming results of Eurobarometer surveys confirm the urgent request for fresh recommendations. Turns out Nearly half of EU citizens would be at hazard of wellness or life after 3 days from the disruption of food and water supply. The problem is peculiarly severe in large cities, where residents have become accustomed to buying on an ongoing basis.
Modern societies are based on a "just-in-time" logistics model, where supermarkets minimize retention and goods are delivered respective times a day. This highly efficient strategy is usually becoming an Achilles heel during the crisis. The pandemic showed how fast empty shelves become a reality as shortly as panic occurs. The Union of Preparedness aims to build a safety bufferWhich will avoid chaos and give the services time to organize help.
That's not all. Changes in schools and infrastructure are coming
Individual preparation of citizens is only 1 component of the fresh strategy. The European Commission is besides planning fundamental systemic changes. 1 of the key demands is introducing safety and crisis management education into school programmes at all stages of teaching. Children and young people are to learn how to respond to alarms, give first aid and organize vicinity assistance.
At the same time, Brussels promises immense investments in dual-use infrastructure. The fresh highways, railway lines and telecommunications networks will be designed to service the economy in peace and, in the event of a crisis, to let fast evacuation of the population or a smooth spread of troops. The precedence is to strengthen the resilience of critical infrastructure – power plants, water supply networks, hospitals and ICT systems – to physical and cyber attacks. This comprehensive approach, which is pioneered by Germany, is intended to transform the full European Union into a fortress resistant to modern threats.
Continued here:
The European Union is imposing a fresh obligation. all household needs supplies for 72 hours!
