Magnus Brunner called for cooperation between the EU and the Western Balkans in border protection. At the conference, he highlighted the results of the measures and presented a new visa strategy.
European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner on Thursday called on EU member states and the countries of the Western Balkans to strengthen cooperation in the field of border protection. He stated this in Sarajevo, where he participated in a conference on cross-border crime and illegal migration, TASR writes, according to a report by the Hina agency.
Brunner noted that cooperation in migration control has already brought concrete results. He recalled that over the past three years, the number of illegal crossings in the Western Balkans has decreased by almost 90 percent. This is, among other things, a consequence of the harmonization of visa policy and the deployment of personnel of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
New visa strategy
The European Commissioner announced that a new visa strategy is currently being prepared, which aims to ensure better border protection and fight against people smuggling and terrorism, in connection with which 450 people were recently detained. He also commented on the recently launched system of border checks for citizens of non-EU countries (EES), which, according to him, is working well – data on approximately one million persons has been collected.
The Danish Minister for Migration and Integration Rasmus Stoklund, whose country presides over the Council of the EU, took part in the conference in Sarajevo in addition to the ministers of the interior and justice from six states of the region. According to the agency, Hina emphasized the need to balance migration in the labor market with the prevention of illegal entry. According to him, Denmark is looking for an innovative solution in this regard.
Action plan of the region
The ministers of the countries of the Western Balkans signed a joint action plan to combat terrorism and violent extremism for the period up to 2030.
