6.8.2008 Official Journal of the European Union L 210/73 COUNCIL DECISION 2008/617[JHA of 23 June 2008 on the improvement of cooperation between the special intervention units of the Member States of the European Union in crisis situations THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in particular Articles 30, 32 and 34(2)(c) thereof, Having regard to the initiative of the Republic of Austria (1), Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (?), Whereas: 1 O A ) Article 29 of the Treaty states that the Union’s objective is to provide citizens with a high level of safety within an area of freedom, security and justice by developing common action among the Member States in the fields of police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters. In their Declaration on Solidarity against Terrorism of 25 March 2004, the Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the European Union declared their firm intention that the Member States mobilise all the instru- ments at their disposal to assist a Member State or an acceding State in its territory at the request of its political authorities in the event of a terrorist attack. Following the attacks of 11 September 2001, the special intervention units of all law enforcement authorities of the Member States have already initiated cooperation activities under the aegis of the Police Chiefs Task Force. Since 2001, their network, called ‘Atlas’, has conducted various seminars, studies, exchanges of materials, and joint exercises. No single Member State has all the means, resources and expertise at its disposal to deal effectively with all possible kinds of specific or large-scale crisis situations requiring special intervention. It is therefore of crucial importance that each Member State be able to request the assistance of another Member State. Council Decision 2008/615/JHA of 23 June 2008 on the stepping up of cross-border cooperation, particularly in combating terrorism and cross-border crime (}) (Priim Decision), and in particular Article 18 thereof, regulates forms of police assistance between Member States in connection with mass gatherings and similar major events, O] C 321, 29.12.2006, p. 45. Opinion of 31 January 2008 (not yet published in the Official Journal). See page 1 of this Official Journal. disasters and serious accidents. This Decision does not cover mass gatherings, natural disasters or serious accidents within the meaning of Article 18 of the Priim Decision but complements those provisions of the Priim Decision envisaging forms of police assistance between Member States through special intervention units in other situations, namely in man-made crisis situations presenting a serious direct physical threat to persons, property, infrastructure or institutions, in particular hostage taking, hijacking and similar events. The availability of this legal framework and of a compilation indicating the competent authorities will allow Member States to react speedily and gain time should such a crisis situation arise. Moreover, with a view to enhancing Member States’ ability to prevent and respond to such crisis situations, and in particular terrorist incidents, it is essential for the special intervention units to meet regularly and organise joint trainings, so as to benefit from mutual experiences, HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: Article 1 Subject matter This Decision lays down general rules and conditions to allow for special intervention units of one Member State to provide assistance and/or operate on the territory of another Member State (hereinafter referred to as the requesting Member State) in cases where they have been invited by the requesting Member State and have agreed to do so in order to deal with a crisis situation. The practical details and implementing arrangements complementing this Decision shall be agreed directly between the requesting Member State and the requested Member State. Article 2 Definitions For the purpose of this Decision: (@) ‘special intervention unit’ shall mean any law enforcement unit of a Member State which is specialised in the control of a crisis situation;