Press Release

JOINT PRESS STATEMENT BY THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND SWITZERLAND
ON A BIOTERRORISM INTERNATIONAL COORDINATION EXERCISE                                                                       

On September 7-8, 2006, the United States Government and the Government of Switzerland co-host a Bioterrorism International Coordination Exercise (called “Black ICE”) in Montreux, Switzerland.  This two-day tabletop exercise is an opportunity for officials from numerous international organizations to examine the critical cooperation and coordination issues that would be necessary to respond to an international bioterrorism attack.  Black ICE is made possible, in part, through the financial support of the Nuclear Threat Initiative’s (NTI) Global Health and Security Initiative and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Black ICE will challenge participants with a fictional smallpox attack scenario that will explore the complex issues of coordination across borders and among a wide variety of public and international institutions, while confronting the unique convergence of public health, security, transportation, law enforcement, and humanitarian issues inherent to a bioterrorism threat.  The goal of this exercise is to increase participants’ awareness of the international community’s capabilities and resources, as well as to identify gaps and overlaps in the response to a potential bioterrorist attack.

Organizations participating in Black ICE are the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the UN Department for Disarmament Affairs (UN DDA), the World Customs Organization (WCO), the World Food Program (WFP), and the World Health Organization (WHO).