European Commission/PHOTO/Guillaume Périgois
The Council of the European Union decided on Nov. 18 to approve talks with four Western Balkan states on expanding their cooperation agreements with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex).
The European Commission can now begin talks with Serbia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro on Frontex’s new mandate and giving executive powers to its members, including border control and the registration of persons, the Council has said. The new agreements will make it possible for Frontex to assist these states in managing migration trends, fighting illegal migration and curbing cross-border crime, the Council went on to say in a release.
The European Commission had said earlier that the new legal framework should allow for the deployment of Frontex officers along the region’s internal borders as well as granting them executive powers “in order to offer better support and strengthen border management cooperation in the Western Balkans.”
Under the existing EU agreements with Albania, Montenegro and Serbia, Frontex can only carry out joint operations and send teams to states bordering the Union. Negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina were conducted under similar terms, but failed to produce an agreement.
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