After three years of negotiations, the European Parliament and Council have reached a political agreement on the Pact on Migration and Asylum. Today’s agreement fills an important gap and is a major breakthrough towards a common system for managing migration in the EU.
A report on the temporary EU law for voluntarily detection of child sexual abuse by Internet companies shows that detection helps identify thousands of children, secure thousands of convictions, and take down millions of abuse materials yearly. This confirms the need for an EU law allowing detection of child sexual abuse online.
After the Council’s adoption of the new visa rules, travellers to the Schengen area will be able to apply for their visa online. The new visa rules will modernise, simplify, and harmonise visa procedures through digitalisation, although the provisions will not be applicable immediately.
This issue’s headline is the new anti-smuggling legislation adopted by the Commission and the International Conference on a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling, convened by Commissioner Johansson, on 28 November in Brussels. The same subject is discussed in more detail in the Commissioner’s blog. Then you can read two stories on migration: the Commission’s proposal to create an EU Talent Pool addressing labour shortages and funding to reinforce border security and migration management across the EU. In the area of Schengen, read about the recommendation for increased cooperation between Member States in the Schengen area, followed by a piece on “everything you need to know on the Schengen visa digitalisation.” On security, we have a special feature on this year’s Security Innovation Awards and their winning projects. A longer read features the EU-trained dogs that are helping the Ukrainian Armed Forces demine and rebuild the country. Under the project spotlight, an EU funded project for those fleeing the war in Ukraine sets new standards for humanitarian reception. Finally, in the Events section, we announce the opening of the 8th European Migration Forum. Check out the programme and follow the livestreaming!
As we move towards the conclusion of the negotiations on the EU asylum and migration pact and the much needed legislative foundation of the future migration policy, the Commission continues to address the twin operational challenges of the migration equation.
A new EU survey on the digitalisation of travel documents is out. Overall, 68% of Europeans favour the use of digital travel documents for extra-Schengen travel, while 66% prefer having one single application for the use of digital travel documents at EU level, rather than one for each country.
On 18 October, the Commission adopted a new Communication on countering threats posed by unlawful and dangerous use of drones that are designed for civil use. This communication outlines the EU’s future policy in drone usage and is an important step in developing a harmonised legal framework to mitigate potential risks.
On 4 October, Member States reached an agreement on the proposed Regulation for situations of crisis and force majeure in the field of migration and asylum. As a key element of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, this agreement paves the way to the negotiations between European Parliament and Council.
On 18 October, the Commission adopted a proposal for a Regulation to amend the current visa suspension mechanism and address evolving migration and security challenges. The EU has a visa-free regime with 60 non-EU countries. Visa-free travel strengthens business, social and cultural ties, but also requires constant vigilance.
Home Affairs Ministers discussed Schengen, cross-border crime and the interoperability of EU information systems. The Council focused on EU internal security implications in view of the situation in Israel. Progress on the Migration Pact, the external dimension of migration and the EU Civil Protection Mechanism were on the agenda.
In her blog, Commissioner Johansson goes over the public debate on her proposal to prevent and fight child sexual abuse.
The Commission presented an EU Action Plan for the Eastern Mediterranean migration route. This Action Plan is part of the commitment to meet the challenges of irregular migration in an operational way. The plan outlines measures to prevent irregular departures, combat smuggling and provide legal pathways.
On 18 October, the Commission adopted an EU Roadmap to boost the fight against drug trafficking and organised crime. The drug trade poses one of the most serious security threats to the EU today. The Roadmap consists of concrete actions reinforcing the EU’s global response to organised crime and drug trafficking networks.
For the EU Anti-Trafficking Day, the Commission launched an awareness raising campaign to help put an end to trafficking in human beings. The EU-wide “End human trafficking. "Break the invisible chain” campaign aims to inform citizens on the reality of this crime and invites them to join the fight against human trafficking.
Learn interesting facts about the European Union Space Programme advancing security applications and fostering innovation across Europe's space endeavours.
Curious to know about eu-LISA contribution to the EU security research? Read it here.
Read more about CEPOL becoming the EU Law Enforcement Training Hub providing EU law enforcement officials skills on cooperating with their peers in other Member States.
Do you already know about establishment of the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA) in 2024 and the importance it will have on drugs research and innovation?
