The Finnish Border Guard hosted an expert meeting on coast guard functions in Turku

The Finnish Border Guard chairs the North Atlantic Coast Guard Forum (NACGF) in 2023. As a part of the chairmanship, an expert meeting of coast guard authorities was organized in Turku on 17−20 April. Nearly 100 experts from Europe and North America participated in the meeting.

During the conference week, the experts participated in workshops that covered a wide range of coast guard functions, including maritime security, prevention of drug smuggling and illegal entry, fisheries control, environmental damage prevention, air and sea rescue, and technological issues pertaining to coast guard functions. In addition, they took part in a simulator exercise that was built around autonomous shipping and cyber attacks. The exercise’s goal was to provide useful information on how coast guard authorities can utilise autonomous and unmanned technologies in their own activities. 

Connected to the theme for the chairmanship, which is autonomous and unmanned systems, the keynote speech of the meeting was given by Anton Westerlund from Kongsberg Maritime. The keynote addressed the implications of remote and autonomous solutions for the maritime domain, and raised discussion in the audience on what new opportunities and challenges autonomous solutions create for coast guard authorities.

The North Atlantic Coast Guard Forum was established in 2007 with the objective to develop cooperation and the exchange of information between the coast guard authorities of the Member States in matters related to maritime security and coast guard functions.

More information:

Captain Juha Vuolle, juha.vuolle(at)raja.fi 
Project Manager Heikki Kontro, heikki.kontro(at)raja.fi 
 

The Finnish Border Guard has received support from the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund to carry out the chairmanship and to develop cooperation in coast guard functions. 

European Union