Global Security Newswire

Worried by the potential for a terrorist attack during the 2010 Winter Olympics, Canadian authorities increased radiation detection efforts at a major port and instituted "heightened vigilance" at the nation's airports, the Vancouver Sun reported Wednesday (see GSN, Feb. 16).

"Questions have ... been raised regarding the possibility that a terrorist group could exploit the movement of ... containers through the port of Vancouver during the Olympic and Paralympic Games," the Canada Border Services Agency stated in a memorandum, "Olympic Security (Nuclear Vulnerability)" issued ahead of the February Games. "The CBSA manages a sophisticated and multilayered approach to mitigate national security and terrorism related threats posed to Canada in the marine container mode."

Agency efforts to prevent nuclear material from being smuggled into the country included carrying out comprehensive threat assessments of every container bound for Canada "to identify potential national security threats, including possible shipments of illicit radioactive material" and deploying a range of radiation detectors at Vancouver's port for screening incoming materials, according to the document obtained by the newspaper.

Some efforts to check for radioactive material had been set up prior to the Olympics.

Another CBSA document detailed agency efforts to improve screening at all Canadian ports for chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive materials.

"The Enforcement Branch has developed a plan that will support port of entry enforcement activities by providing increased training, maintenance and support for a variety of contraband and CBRNE detection tools during the Games" the document stated.

The Canadian Border Services Agency had "no information of a threat or actual attempt to smuggle bomb/radiological material leading up to or during the 2010 Games," according to agency spokeswoman Shakila Manzoor. Rather, the heightened radiation scanning was pursued to guard against a variety of "worst-case scenarios" (Chad Skelton, Vancouver Sun, Sept. 8).