The European Commission was assured by Germany, Denmark and Sweden that the extraordinary measures for border control of those countries would be reduced to their minimum, it became clear on January 6 after the meeting between EU Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos and representatives of the three EU states on occasion of the reintroduction of the control along their borders. Commissioner Avramopoulos underlined that these countries were real example of European solidarity, hospitality and freedom of movement and added that the only way out of the crisis regarded a common decision taken by all 28 EU member states. Deputy Chair of the Parliamentary Group of the European People’s Party and Bulgarian MEP Maria Gabriel commented the situation in an interview for Radio Bulgaria.

“The temporary reintroduction of the border control was included in the Schengen Area Code itself. Let us look at the positive side - sometimes it enables the member states to combat criminal networks which benefit from the traffic of migrants and the refugee crisis. The special services gather valuable information about these networks while they are confused and try to restructure their activities. When we speak of Denmark or Sweden, which introduced the border control on November 11, 2015, we should note that the number of the asylum applications has dwindled significantly there. On the other hand, the solution to that problem does not lie on the border of one, or another EU state. The European Union has to find a common solution to that issue, which has nothing to do with the closure of state borders. We should know that the Schengen Area does not only mean freedom of movement. It is also an area of security, exchange of information and control of the EU external borders. The exchange of data must be systematic and the Schengen Information System must be able to consult with other agencies such as FRONTEX. The exchange of information must be carried out in real time, so that the competent authorities can react in a timely manner. Besides, we should speak of a systematic control of all nationals upon entering or leaving the EU, including the ones who possess passports from the Schengen Area. Such a measure has not been implemented until now.”

These measures have been consulted with the new European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

“In December 2015, the EU Commissioner for Migration Avramopoulos and Vice President of the EC Frans Timmermans stated clearly that the EU countries wanted to share the responsibility of protecting the union’s external borders through the establishment of the new European Border and Coast Guard Agency. That is why, it is important to keep the principle of free movement of people and meanwhile improve the security of the European Union and manage effectively all migratory processes within that area. That is why FRONTEX will be part of the new agency and will provide assistance based on its rich experience in that field. The EU did a lot for FRONTEX over the recent months. Let me remind you that FRONTEX did not have its own equipment and relied mainly on the help of the EU member states. However, the new agency will have technical equipment which allows its teams to deploy quickly within three days in case of emergency. Besides, a center for monitoring and risk analysis will be created within the agency itself, which is one of the key elements of the new structure. The EU is often criticized that it follows the events. Prevention would cost us much less and that center would help a lot in that direction. It is very important that the new European Border and Coast Guard Agency will be given the mandate to organize joint operations with neighboring non-EU countries, because migration does not start at the EU borders. It will be of great importance how the decision-making mechanism will be implemented. If the union needs to act in a given state, it should take into account the stand of that country as well. The activity scope of the new agency must cover the EU external border, rather than the Schengen Area only. Otherwise, Bulgaria and Croatia will remain in a very delicate position.”

MEP Maria Gabriel shared with Radio Bulgaria her opinion about Bulgaria’s accession to the Schengen Area.

“In my view, Bulgaria and the current cabinet headed by Premier Borissov show a strong Europe-wide behavior. Bulgaria has been fulfilling conscientiously its duties and it has fulfilled the technical criteria long ago. To me it is very important that the good protection of the Bulgarian borders guarantees the security of the whole Europe, rather than of the Bulgarian citizens only. In the current dynamic and complicated situation, Bulgaria is not a country which threatens, or twists the hands of other states. It shows decent behavior, which will continue to be very beneficial in the long run. It would give us arguments when we continue with the debates about the amendments of given procedures and how they should apply to everyone.”

Maria Gabriel said that the European Parliament and the European Commission support Bulgaria in its Schengen bid and reminded that the decision is taken with a solid vote by the Council of Ministers. She voiced the opinion that perhaps it was time for the EU to shift to qualified majority during such voting, because the principle of solid vote turned unproductive in a union formed of 28 member states.

English version: Kostadin Atanasov