HOW SAFE IS THE US? HOMELAND SECURITY CONFERENCE ON MARCH 25-26

Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, Navy Chief Vernon Clark, Homeland Security Deputy Director Charles Abbot to Speak
By: Terry Ann Knopf
Manager of Media Relations

Against the backdrop of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, public attention has been largely centered on aviation security. But other potential vulnerabilities face the United States as well -- including the safety of our ports, waterways and ships [commercial and recreational], the threat of bio-terrorism, the ability of our public health system to respond to a nuclear attack, and the need to protect our critical infrastructure [communications networks, banking and financing systems etc.]

These and other vital dimensions of homeland security are the focus of a national two-day

For more information... Meeting the Homeland Security Challenge Conference Web Site

conference in Cambridge, MA on March 25-26, headlined by the Honorable Norman Y. Mineta, Secretary of Transportation; ADM Vernon E. Clark, USN, Chief of Naval Operations; VADM Thomas H. Collins, USCG, Vice Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard; and ADM Charles S. Abbot, USN (Ret.), Deputy Director of the Office of Homeland Security.

Called "Meeting the Homeland Security Challenge: Maritime and Other Critical Dimensions," the conference has been organized by the Institute of Foreign Policy Analysis and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, in co-sponsorship with the United States Coast Guard and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency [DOD]. The conference is expected to draw several hundred people, including reporters, ranking policymakers, senior military leaders, business executives, physicians and researchers.

With 95 percent of our trade shipped by sea, maritime terrorism will get special attention, particularly the role of the Coast Guard in protecting more than 361 ports and 95,000 miles of coastline. Experts will assess the safety and reliability of our country’s ports, waterways and the ships that use them; the evasive measures that terrorists could take to smuggle a weapon of mass destruction through a U.S. port; and the adequacy of our current inventory of ships, aircraft, sensors, and other equipment to combat this threat.

Biochemical terrorism, which poses formidable challenges to our national security as well as our public health system, will be another important focus. Experts will evaluate the lessons learned from the recent anthrax attacks against federal buildings; methods to detect biochemical or other attacks against the nation's supplies of food, air and water; the credibility and severity of threats and the procedures for communicating them to the public; and the tradeoffs between protecting intelligence sources and sharing information between government agencies and the public.

WHEN: March 25-26, 2002.

WHERE: Royal Sonesta Hotel, 5 Cambridge Pkway, Cambridge, MA Tel: 617-806-4200

The highlights include:

I. Mon. March 25: Assessing Vulnerabilities

8:45-9:30 a.m. Opening Keynote Speaker U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon, House Armed Services Committee. Emerging threats to homeland security.

12:15-1:30 p.m. Luncheon Speaker ADM Charles S. Abbot, USN (Ret.), Deputy Director, Office of Homeland Security. Organizing homeland security.

7:00-9:00 p.m. Dinner/Keynote Speaker Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta. Discussing transportation security and lessons learned from 9/11.

10:00-12:00 p.m. Mike Leone, Port Director, Massachusetts Port Authority[MASSPORT].
The role of Massport in Massachusetts maritime security.


II. Tues. Mar. 26 Maritime Security
12:15-1:30 p.m. Luncheon Speaker ADM Vernon E. Clark, USN, Chief of Naval Operations. The role of the U.S. Navy in maritime security strategy.

2:00-4:30 p.m. Thinking the Unthinkable: Consequence management after WMD attack. Panel includes Dr. Ivan C.A. Walks, Chief Health Officer for the District of Columbia and Director of the District’s Department of Health, will discuss the Washington D.C. response to the anthrax attacks; and Mr. Richard Swensen, Director of Commonwealth Security, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, will address state-level preparedness issues.
 international relations.