Delegation from the German Federal Academy for Security Policy visited NATO ENSEC COE

On the 22^nd of May, NATO ENSEC COE was visited by a group of participants of the Core Course in Security Policy organized by the Federal Academy for Security Policy in Germany. 25 guests were representing various government institutions and businesses related to energy and security. They have visited Lithuania as a part of their Field study trip through the Baltic region. During it, they will meet with the teams from different institutions and get acquainted with their work.

At first, the Deputy Director Lieutenant Colonel Pascal FERNANDEZ welcomed the guests and briefly presented the NATO ENSEC COE. He also told that they will hear three briefings from the Centre’s Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). The first to present was Ms Julia VAINIO, an SME from the Strategic Analysis Division. She talked about the gas system development in the Baltic States and presented the main changes that system has gone through. The guests were interested in how this affected region’s energy resilience and independence and how the sector’s diversification was implemented.

Then, the floor was taken by Dr. Tadas JAKŠTAS from the Research and Lessons Learned Division. He presented the insights from the study of Baltic region’s Synchronization with the Central European Network. Main challenges and threats of the ongoing process interested the group of guests from Germany. They also asked about the Cybersecurity issues and what concrete measures does Lithuania and other countries take against it. To answer these and further questions, SME Vytautas Paul Butrimas was ready to present his findings on Cybersecurity in energy sector. He emphasized the fragility of cyberspace and the need to work together in order to prevent severe damage on critical infrastructure.

After these briefings from the Centre’s SMEs, they all sat down to discuss the issues in more detail. Participants of the meeting talked about the importance of cooperation between civil and military institutions as well as scientists, engineers and cybersecurity experts. It was concluded with an idea that know-how experience is all that matters in the face of threats. Therefore, experts from the NATO ENSEC COE expressed their gratitude to guests from Germany for their visit and ensured that they are always ready to share the knowledge and expertise with Allies and partners.