1. The European Data Act

In its Data Act of December 13, 2023, the European Union established guidelines governing the provision of data to public authorities, the Commission, the European Central Bank, or Union bodies in cases of exceptional need. Cases of exceptional need may arise in public emergencies or other exceptional situations, public health emergencies, emergencies due to natural disasters, including those exacerbated by climate change and environmental degradation, and major man-made disasters such as major cybersecurity incidents.

This Regulation is binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. It entered into force on 11 January 2024 and, after a transitional period of 20 months, will become directly applicable law across the EU from 12 September 2025 . 

A draft law implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2854 ( Data Act Implementation Act – DA-DG ) is currently pending, and statements have been published on it. The German Association of Cities also comments on this in its sections “Data Access and Use by Municipal Institutions,” “Technical Infrastructure,” “Data Provision in Emergencies,” and ” Interoperability and Participation in Data Spaces.”

The term “Situations of Exceptional Need” is very comprehensive and is also applicable in civil-military cooperation in the operational planning and implementation of other defence-preparatory legislation.  

2. Interoperability / Information Infrastructures / Common European Data Spaces

Interoperability in information exchange and the application of standardized processes ( SOPs – Standard Operational Procedures ) is the foundation for cross-organizational and cross-border cooperation. Especially in the case of so-called “just-in-time” requirements for the provision and further processing of complex information (including “big data”), situational analyses, decision support, and action, national, European, and global information infrastructures designed according to the regional scope and standardized in collaboration with all stakeholders are indispensable.

Geoinformation infrastructures are already being used with great success in the areas of protection and security, as well as in civil-military cooperation. Legal foundations for legally compliant developments and applications have existed for years at the federal and state levels .

Appropriate methodological and technical developments are urgently needed for specialist data in all areas of protection and security , in civil-military cooperation, and in the aforementioned “cases of exceptional necessity” or “situations of exceptional need.” In practice, the complexity of the organizations and institutions involved requires massive interoperability to implement all highly dynamic, decision- and action-critical processes. These applied information technology methods and techniques, which have also been successfully used in other specialist areas, enable just-in-time information generation, transmission, situational analysis, decision support, action, and goal achievement monitoring under specifically specified time constraints.

With its “Interoperable Europe Act,” the European Union has already established a binding legal framework and coordinated procedures for information infrastructures in all areas for all member states. Accompanying this, common data spaces ( Common European Data Spaces ) have already been established.

“The Common European Data Spaces … will allow data from across the EU to be made available and exchanged in a trustworthy and secure manner. EU Businesses, public administrations, and individuals will control the data they generate. At the same time, these data holders will benefit from a safe and reliable framework to share their data for innovation purposes”

“TheCommission has put forward a framework to develop and implement multi-country projects (MCPs). MCPs (EU Digital Strategy download par. 4.1 p.15) are large-scale projects that allow for Member States’ intervention in strategic areas to contribute to the digital transformation of the EU”

The massive progress in the development and operation of subject-specific information infrastructures – in some cases over many years – as well as the intensive support and supervision in the generation of the “European Common Data Spaces” make these concepts appear to be state of the art.

It is therefore suggested that an additional European Data Space for Safety and Security, the “Common European Information Space for Safety and Security”, be established and operated.

The Bundeswehr Territorial Tasks Command (now the Territorial Joint Command) was already developing a “Territorial Hub ” for civil-military cooperation in 2021, which can be seen as preparation for the crises and challenges of tomorrow. Since October 2024, the CTF Baltic  (also cited in the Security Policy Working Paper No. 4/2025) has had a similar task of consolidating military and civilian data for the entire Baltic Sea region. 

3. Human resources management

Last but not least, the parliamentary review of the Ahr Valley disaster also highlighted the particular challenges of human resources management in long-term deployments. All physical and information processes require special coordination, especially in highly interconnected, risky, and hazard-prone activities under extreme time pressure. Goal achievement must be continuously and critically reviewed to ensure the best possible outcomes for all those affected.

Such data must also be processed using appropriately designed information infrastructures to ensure adequate opportunities for success. Structured ontologies for roles, capabilities, availability, representation, etc., as well as the (virtual and physical) object structures, attributes, and processes associated with these structural elements, based on jointly developed international standards, are particularly important for large-scale cross-border exercises and the planning of operational procedures in an international context.

 4. Perspective

The challenges for the application and use of the state of the art in interoperability and information infrastructures in all areas of safety and security are considerable. The federal structure of responsibilities is still often seen as a significant obstacle, but practical experience in other fields has shown that legal and operational responsibilities are not affected in this respect. Interoperability and information infrastructures arise from the cooperation of the participants with the aim of achieving the necessary coordination in the central informationally sharedconcerns methodically and technically and to ensure them in a resilient manner on a long-term basis.

Author: Horst Kremers  https://RIMMA.org