Everyone and everything is ready for the meeting between Presidents Biden and Putin in Geneva.
Historic security for a historic event
Biden and Putin. Two of the most influential presidents in the world. On Swiss soil. At the same time. Police from almost every canton, and American and Russian security services took on the mammoth task of ensuring the security of this historic meeting. In the middle of it all: fedpol.
Geneva airport. The air was shimmering over the tarmac. In the glaring midday heat, several dozen vehicles were lined up: bright orange police motorbikes, the civilian patrol cars of the Geneva cantonal police, the boxy black SUVs of the American Secret Service. In the middle of the neatly lined-up convoy, there stood the US president’s limousine.
So much to coordinate – so little time
Around two weeks earlier, media around the world had reported on the upcoming meeting between Biden and Putin. Landing point: Geneva. For a brief moment, Switzerland was at the centre of the world’s attention. A historic meeting – with historic security requirements.
It quickly became clear that this would be an endurance test for the authorities involved, including the Cantonal Police of Geneva, the Swiss Armed Forces, the Swiss Air Force, the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security, and the security teams of the Russian and American delegations.
fedpol, which is responsible for ensuring the security of foreign presidents visiting Switzerland, was at the hub of security efforts.
There is so much to coordinate. And so little time. For fedpol, every hour counts. The heightened threat of terror, extremist groups’ activities, demonstrations held by expatriates from either country – these are only some of the things fedpol had to consider when it compiled its detailed analysis of the threat situation. It analysed the situation in close consultation with its national and international partners. This analysis formed the basis for the overall security plan.
Geneva at a standstill
Biden arrived the day before the meeting. 24 hours later, the Russian presidential plane set course for Geneva. By then, public life in the centre of Geneva had practically come to a standstill. Several thousand police officers from nearly every canton lined the closed-off streets by the lake.
While the talks at Villa La Grange were winding down, here and there you could see bodyguards, police officers and secret service staff wiping the sweat from their brows – both from the tension of the situation and from having to wear such heavy suits in the heat. Transporting the presidents back to the airport in their convoys, in neat rows just as before, would be another major security challenge for them – one of countless such challenges during these extraordinary days in Geneva.
That’s how it goes when Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin meet in person.