81st General Assembly in Berlin

81st COLPOFER General Assembly in Berlin highlights railway security, resilience and military mobility

From 10 to 12 June 2026, the 81st COLPOFER General Assembly was held in Berlin, with DB AG hosting a three-day programme that included a networking session at DB Headquarters, the main General Assembly, and a technical visit to the DB Sicherheit Training Center in Schöneweide. The Assembly was held under the theme “Military Mobility in Crisis and Defense”, reflecting the growing strategic importance of rail within Europe’s wider security and resilience architecture. The event brought together 57 representatives from 30 organizations and institutions across 21 countries. 

A particularly important feature of this year’s Assembly was the first-time participation of Ukrainian Railways. Their presence gave concrete relevance to the discussions on resilience, critical infrastructure protection, and operational continuity under conditions of conflict and hybrid threat. COLPOFER had previously received the formal application for membership from Ukrainian Railways, and the Secretary General’s presentation in Berlin underlined the significant added value they bring to the association through their direct experience in safeguarding railway infrastructure, protecting passengers and personnel, and maintaining operational resilience under extraordinary circumstances. It is our pleasure to announce that during the Berlin General Assembly, Ukrainian Railways was officially welcomed as a new member of COLPOFER. 

The relevance of Ukrainian Railways to the Assembly was also reflected in the programme itself. The agenda included an executive contribution by Oleksander Pertsovskyi, CEO of Ukrainian Railways, titled “Inside Ukrainian Railways: An Executive Perspective”, as well as a dedicated session on the security organization of Ukrainian Railways. These interventions provided participants with a timely and operationally grounded insight into how rail systems can continue to function as vital national assets under extreme pressure, while also contributing to broader European thinking on preparedness and resilience.

The Assembly theme placed particular emphasis on the need to strengthen the resilience of European railways in a context marked by geopolitical instability, hybrid threats, sabotage risks, and rising expectations around military mobility. In the opening remarks delivered by Vice-President Dr. Patrick Hennies, rail was presented not simply as a mode of transport, but as a strategic asset for economic stability, supply chain continuity, and European security. His address stressed that military mobility has become a key component of European security and defence readiness, and that railway infrastructure must increasingly be viewed as dual-use infrastructure capable of remaining operational during crises and defence scenarios.

This framing was consistent with the agenda, which brought together high-level institutional, operational and strategic perspectives. The day opened with welcome remarks from Dr. Patrick Hennies, followed by the executive contribution from Ukrainian Railways. A central expert panel discussion, “Rail Under Stress Test: Enabling Military Mobility in Crisis and Defense”, featured contributions from the German Armed Forces, DB AG, SNCF and the German Federal Police. The programme then continued with sessions on the security organization of Ukrainian Railways, the geopolitical threat landscape, artificial intelligence in organizational models, updates from the European Commission through Christophe Dussart, and an update from the UIC Security Department delivered by Grigore Havarneanu, a RAILPOL update delivered by John Laene, Managing Director of RAILPOL.

The contribution from the European Commission added a strong policy dimension to the Assembly. In his presentation, Christophe Dussart described LANDSEC and RAILSEC as key platforms for information exchange and for the development of recommendations relating to land and rail transport security, resilience and cyber-related issues.  

This perspective complemented the broader priorities presented by Secretary General Maria Cristina Fiorentino, whose update set out COLPOFER’s 2026 focus on strategic partnerships, operational readiness, international cooperation, and stronger communication and information-sharing tools. In this sense, the Berlin Assembly served not only as a forum for discussion, but also as an important milestone in the implementation of COLPOFER’s broader work plan.

A significant part of the Assembly was devoted to updates from COLPOFER Working Groups, highlighting the operational depth and range of the association’s activities. The programme included reports on Economic Crime, Major Events and Control Rooms, Fraud and Ticket Forgeries, Graffiti, Freight and Special Transports, the CER Working Group, the Brenner Group, and Antiterrorist and Extremist Activities. The related materials show that these Working Groups continue to address practical challenges such as economic crime, cross-border incident and crisis coordination, infrastructure resilience under the CER Directive, military transport security, and information sharing on recurring and emerging threats across the European railway sector. 

The Assembly was formally closed by host Dr. Patrick Hennies, with brief concluding remarks by COLPOFER President Salvatore Iannicelli. Their closing messages underlined the value of the exchanges held in Berlin and reaffirmed the shared commitment to strengthening railway security and resilience across Europe.

The three-day format also supported the networking and peer-exchange dimension that has long been a defining feature of COLPOFER activities. The programme began on 10 June with a welcome cocktail and networking session at DB AG Headquarters, continued on 11 June with a guided city walk and official dinner, and concluded on 12 June with a technical visit to the DB Sicherheit Training Center, including a live demonstration of the Special Response Team, the Critical Infrastructure Protection Team and selected operational equipment, including vehicles and UAS.  

COLPOFER extends its sincere thanks to DB AG for hosting the 81st General Assembly, and to Vice President Dr. Patrick Hennies, Galina Bolich and her team for the excellent organization, hospitality and support that contributed to the success of this important gathering of the European railway security community.