Rio de Janeiro - The FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 will rely on a security plan comprised of Brazilian federal, state and municipal forces, with more than 54,000 security officers involved in implementing the security plan designed for the competition that kicks off Saturday, 15 June. Details of theConfederations Cup security plan were announced during a press conference held on Friday, 14 June at the Open Media Centre in Rio de Janeiro. According to General Jamil Megid, head of the Brazilian Ministry of Defense's Special Advisory Staff for Security of Major Events, the objective of the security strategy is to act preventively. The national defense contingent relies on 20,000 security officers in the host cities; over 1,100 of this group are military personnel with specializations such as combating terrorism or chemical and nuclear agents. "The main objective in the areas of public security and defense is to provide a safe and peaceful atmosphere. The principal focus is on coordination and integration. Obviously there are several institutions on the federal, state and municipal level, all of whom have their own doctrine and manner of procedure. What we are attempting is to optimize these efforts and build a synergy, with all these institutions cooperating with one another," said General Megid. In addition to plans for the the FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013, planning national defense and public security for the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 also calls for integrating strategies among the armed forces, installing command and control Centres, and buying equipment and technology, all of which totals R$ 1.9 billion (approximately US$ 890 million) in investment from the federal government. Eight Integrated Command Centres have already been installed, in addition to two national Centres (in Brasília and Rio de Janeiro), and one in each host city for the Confederations Cup. On Thursday 13 June, President Dilma Rousseff inaugurated 12 Integrated Mobile Command Centers, two for each city hosting games of the Confederations Cup. The equipment used to help integrate the work of the federal, state and municipal security forces includes monitoring and communications systems to provide security for the duration of the competition. The security plan also includes helicopters with high-technology vigilance equipment, anti-bomb equipment, and other security apparatuses. The Brazilian Ministry of Justice's Extraordinary Secretariat for Security of Major Events has confirmed the contingent will include 3,500 federal police officers; 2,800 federal highway patrol officers, 600 members of the National Public Security Force; 150 members of the National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN); 31,000 military police officers; 5,100 firefighters; 3,400 police officers; 6,200 municipal guards; and 2,200 traffic police officers. José Monteiro, director of operations at the Extraordinary Secretariat for Security of Major Events, explains that the investments are enabling a coordinated strategy between security forces from all three levels of government. "The equipment purchased is only the visible part of what has been done over the last few years. The part that cannot be seen, which is just as important as the material legacy, is what we call the operational and doctrinal legacy: bringing the forces together, working and planning in concert." In addition to Monteiro and General Megid, the press conference was attended by Colonel Wanius Amorim, Extraordinary Superintendent for Major Events at the Rio de Janeiro State Civil Defense, and Lieutenant-Colonel Marcelo Rocha, head of the Operational Planning sector of the Rio de Janeiro Military Police.
