On 9–10 December 2025, the PA Secure Steering Group gathered in Kraków for one of its largest meetings in years — with all nine PA Secure Member States present, and a special guest: the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management of Iceland: more than 40 participants took part in the two-days meeting.
The meeting was generously hosted by the National Headquarters of the State Fire Service of Poland together with the Municipal Headquarters of the State Fire Service in Kraków. Participants appreciated not only a relevant and stimulating programme, but also the strong networking opportunities that reflect what PA Secure is all about: practical coordination — and a close-knit community of professionals working on shared, cross-border challenges.
Key themes: Host Nation Support and mass evacuation
Discussions focused on two strategic areas where stronger regional alignment can make a tangible difference:
Host Nation Support (HNS): how to receive and support international assistance in practice, including under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM).
Mass evacuation preparedness: planning, coordination and lessons learned when large-scale movement of people becomes necessary.
Alongside national updates and peer exchange, the Steering Group benefited from expert inputs from Poland, UNHCR (Poland) and the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
After two days of focused dialogue, Member States agreed that more intensive coordination on evacuation preparedness is needed – building on lessons learned from Poland’s unprecedented efforts in receiving large numbers of Ukrainian refugees in 2022.
The next phase will focus on agreeing practical formats for this intensified coordination, including options such as: an expert/working group, joint guidance and templates, and/or a dedicated project that turns shared experience into common capacity across the Baltic Sea Region.
