Vienna, 19/01/2001 (Agence Europe) - In his speech on Thursday before the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna, CFSP High Representative Javier Solana stressed the importance, in the range of instruments available to the EU for contributing to crisis prevention and management, of the aim of having a rapidly deployable police force. The aim of being able to deploy up to 5,000 police officers by 2003, including 1,000 deployable in thirty days, is "ambitious" as, unlike troops, policemen are not normally readily available for deployment overseas at short notice, he noted, stating that the "EU does have the advantage of having access to a wide range of different police capabilities, from gendarmerie-type police with military status to civilian police forces". Mr Solana pointed out that, since the adoption of this "concrete target" in June last, "planning has started" and "scenarios have already been developed". He recalled that "we are now working on the preparations for a first Capability Conference for police, which is to take place in the spring". The Police Service School established and run by the OSCE in Vucitrn is "a good example of how this can be done at the early stages of an international peace-keeping operation", said Mr Solana, stressing the EU's determination to consult closely with the OSCE, the UN and the Council of Europe, and to also develop civil protection capabilities.