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| ​ICAO Secretary General, Fang Liu, addresses ministerial session of the United Nations Security Council. Photo: ICAO |
[Avionics Magazine 09-23-2016] World governments must continue to make significant efforts in order to counter evolving and emerging threats, especially from terrorist groups, ICAO’s Secretary General Fang Liu stressed at the United Nations Security Council ministerial session on Sept. 22.
“The high-profile landside airport attacks in Brussels and Istanbul earlier this year were a tragic reminder of the enormous challenges faced in securing public areas, the inseparability of aviation security and national security, and of the economic and social consequences of terrorism,” remarked Liu, who characterized the security situation as both promising and challenging.
Improvised explosive devices concealed in baggage and cargo, drones, cybersecurity, and insider threats were among the current priority security challenges, Liu noted in her briefing. She also commented that these can be mitigated through the effective implementation of ICAO’s Security Standards, and that this requires complex coordination with national and multilateral bodies. “The required coordination can be complex and challenging at times”, she pointed out, mainly due to variation among state coordination mechanisms, and that greater coordination among domestic national agencies is needed.