EURO 2008: kick-off for the armed forcesBern, 01.06.2008 - For about 10,000 military personnel the kick-off will initiate the security and support operation of the armed forces on behalf of the UEFA EURO 2008. After joining, mission specific training will begin through which each individual serviceman and woman will be made fit for their mission. Advance military personnel have already been on duty since the beginning of April in support of the host cities Basel, Bern, Geneva and Zurich. They have already accomplished a total of more than 7,000 days of service primarily in assembly work. On Monday the majority of military personnel will join to serve on behalf of the 2008 European football championship. During the coming days the forces will refresh their basic knowledge and receive mission-specific training for their individual tasks. The assignments given to the armed forces by the Confederation, cantons and host cities can be roughly divided into three categories.
- Manpower: support in assembly work and dismantling, Support of the police with personnel and equipment (protective tasks, traffic control, vehicle checks), reinforcement of the Border Guard, management support as well as logistic support (medical service);
According to a federal decree the armed forces are not allowed to deploy more than 15,000 military personnel. The civil support service has been laid down for the period of 2 - 28 June. Because the overall operation will thus last for longer than the usual three week refresher course, it will be necessary to relieve some of the troops between the 16th and the 22nd of June 2008. Over this period up to 13,000 military personnel will be on duty; during the remaining weeks of the championship their number will not exceed 10,000. As part of their mission specific training over the coming days, troops will also be instructed on how to apply the rules of engagement and codes of conduct. These have been adapted for each particular assignment and coordinated with the civilian customers. These rules and codes determine among other things whether civilian facilities are to be guarded with weapons cocked. On the basis of the missions assigned to the armed forces most of the military personnel approx. 75 percent will be able to carry out their assignment unarmed. This will also serve to convey a peaceful impression in accord with a peaceful football event. Those military persons who are armed are additionally equipped with a CS gas dispenser. This will enable them to respond more flexibly and as the situation demands. The fielding of this system is planed for 2010 for the entire forces. The armed forces will not carry out law enforcement, this is the responsibility of the police. Wherever possible the troops will avoid direct contact with football fans. The directives of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS) concerning guard assignments carried out by the military personnel shall be observed. The decision on what type of guard is applicable for militarily used facilities and infrastructure i.e. whether the weapon is to be cocked or not will be taken by the responsible military commander. As with all subsidiary military operations the civilian authorities will be responsible for their deployment at the UEFA EURO 2008. Command and control will be in the hands of the armed forces. Major General Peter Stutz, Head of the Armed Forces Joint Staff will be commander of the subsidiary operation. The majority of the troops deployed form part of the task force ground commanded by Major General Eugen Hofmeister, Commander of Territorial Region 2. The task force air is under the command of Major General Markus Gygax, Air Force Operations Chief. Ten battalions will be called up that are specialised in command support (radar, LOS, transmission and reconnaissance), three infantry battalions and two logistic battalions. In addition, there will be medical, transport, traffic and military security detachments and dog handlers, various military staffs as well as air transport and air reconnaissance assets. The armed forces will perform within a joint national security network and work in close collaboration with the civilian security agencies. Military link to the civilian authorities in the host cities are the cantonal territorial liaison staffs. Although the UEFA EURO 2008 mission is the largest operation of the armed forces, it is not the only one being carried out at this time. Other civil affairs support operations in Switzerland and abroad such as ‘AMBA CENTRO’ (protection of diplomatic installations), ‘LITHOS’ (reinforcement of the Border Guard in securing the national border), ‘TIGER’ and ‘FOX’ (flight safety) as well as operations abroad (SWISSCOY) will continue to be carried out unchanged. In addition, as during the rest of the year the armed forces keep resources ready for disaster relief operations and for mastering other incidents.
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