Improving maritime border surveillance
Europe needs to protect itself from illegal movements of goods and people, meaning that constant maritime border surveillance is required. Such systems already exist, but would benefit from additional capacity, including automated detection and analysis. With EU funding support, the PERSEUS (Protection of European seas and borders through the intelligent use of surveillance) project developed and demonstrated an appropriate surveillance system. The project combined existing national systems and platforms providing new capabilities that exceed the European Border Surveillance System's (Eurosur) 2013 expectations. The system is capable of improved detection and identification of suspicious small boats and aircrafts and enhanced automated detection of abnormal vessel patterns. Additionally, improved threat assessment and tracking capabilities can generate a common situational picture. Consortium members (29 in total) drafted a comprehensive set of recommendations and new operational standards, supporting a network created by National Contact Centres, Frontex and the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). Support is provided by transnational exchange of useful and available information, associated procedures and mechanisms, and facilitating the creation of a common information sharing platform. The researchers demonstrated and validated their recommendations through a series of exercises, by implementing missions of drug trafficking and illegal immigration control and delivering surveillance continuity. Project efforts ensure the privileged access of end users to existing surveillance systems and assets, optimising coverage of the area of interest. Users can subsequently assess whether the recommendations align with their needs. An evolution mechanism was included in project work to enlarge the user base and integrate emerging technologies during its lifetime. In order to successfully achieve the project's targets, researchers developed new Command and Control Centres, adapting to legacy systems and enhanced existing platforms. They analysed over 40 different technologies associated with maritime surveillance. Team members drafted important recommendations about the legal and political framework of the proposed surveillance and related technologies, establishing links with other Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) bodies, in particular those associated with border control. The PERSEUS system is expected to integrate and improve European maritime border control and surveillance. The system also contributed to the implementation of Eurosur phase three.
Keywords
Maritime, border surveillance, automated detection, illegal movements, PERSEUS