EU summons a CYBER FORCE into existence

Lithuania's proposal that the European Union create an international cyber-force has been endorsed, and the effort already has seven countries on board.

The baltic country announced yesterday that EU member states have agreed to create “EU Cyber Rapid Response Force” teams, with a declaration of intent signed in Luxembourg yesterday by the EU Foreign Affairs Council.

Minister of National Defence Raimundas Karoblis said international efforts are needed because of the cross-border nature of modern infosec threats (except, of course, he said “cyber”).

As well as Lithuania, which leads the project, participants currently include Croatia, Estonia, France, Finland, the Netherlands, Romania, and Spain. Belgium, Germany, Greece, and Slovenia are observers, and another four countries are expected to sign on by the end of the year.

Karoblis said to take part, countries will need an existing “standing cyber security unit” able to help investigate serious incidents.

In the first phase of the project, participating countries will assess the technical and legal basis of the cyber team operations, and wrangle about project financing.

The second phase, the announcement said, will involve joint exercises, and assess the prospects that members could create mutual cyber defence tools. ®