Military preparing to commit `thousands' to secure 2010 Games

Military preparing to commit `thousands' to secure 2010 Games

Derrick Penner
Vancouver Sun
Wednesday, January 30, 2008

VANCOUVER - The military is preparing to commit "thousands" of troops to
ensure security at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, the Forces' Pacific coast
commanding officer said today.

Rear Admiral Tyrone Pile told a Delta Chamber of Commerce audience that he
already has 25 people at his "joint task force games" headquarters in
Esquimalt, a number that will quadruple by this summer.

In addition, members of the military are also participating in the Games'
integrated security unit led by the RCMP.

Pile said the military contribution likely won't be as large as the
16,000-member contingent the Forces supplied to the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

"We're better at what we do and well organized," he said, "but boy, do I
have some challenges to deal with."

He wouldn't give a hard personnel number but said "there will be thousands
of Canadian forces involved but not to the extent [Montreal] that I
mentioned earlier."

Pile said the 2010 Olympics are a "no-fail mission" for the military.

"It is our No. 1 domestic priority, and we will field the naval, air and
land forces necessary to support it," he added.

Support, Pile said, will include such things as venue security, air, sea and
land surveillance and logistical support.

Pile said he couldn't answer questions about the military's security budget
because planners have yet to finalize what personnel and equipment are
needed for the Olympics.

The military and RCMP have already held their first table-top planning
exercise to test how well their command networks would coordinate with one
another in "dealing with events that could disrupt the Games," he said in an
interview.

Pile wouldn't be more specific about what kind of disruptive events the
exercise anticipated, but the media has previously reported on security
concerns ranging from domestic protests to terrorist attacks.

Canada was listed as the fifth most important "Christian" target behind the
United States, United Kingdom, Spain, and Australia by al-Qaida in 2004,
Canadian Lt.-Gen Marc Dumais wrote in a report made public last spring.

The 2010 Olympics, his report said, "could offer opportunities for
terrorists [international and domestic] and extremists to further their
agendas," to attack Canada or other participating nations.

Pile, on Wednesday, would also not comment on Canada's current terrorism
threat level let alone what the military is preparing to address in 2010.

He would only say the Armed Forces have made a threat assessment and will
ensure they're capable of dealing with any potential changes in the future.

Some 12,350 RCMP, police and private security are also expected to be part
of the Olympic security effort.

The Games' security budget has proved to be a controversial topic with the
RCMP, last summer, admitting the $175 million established for Vancouver's
Olympic bid will be inadequate for the security task.

Military observers have suggested the Armed Forces contribution alone could
run in the half a billion dollar range.

A RCMP report made public noted the integrated security unit is being asked
to secure 100 venues and locations, almost five times the numbers spelled
out in Vancouver's bid, and includes more tasks than they expected, such as
screening up to 100,000 volunteers.