Brussels, 19/04/2010 (Agence Europe) - EU home affairs ministers, who will meet in Luxembourg on Thursday 22 or Friday 23 April, are expected to approve the continuation of development of the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II). The system successfully came through the first technical trials, known as “Milestone 1”, where success was required if SIS II was to continue, draft conclusions under discussion by ministers reveal. Three countries, however, are unhappy with these conclusions: Austria, France and Germany. They feel that the trial was not sufficiently conclusive for there to be any hope of the system being operational before the end of 2011. The cost of SIS II, compared with that of the alternative option, the so-called “SIS I+RE”, would also appear to be a cause of some concern. The positions of Austria and Germany have been long known. How France acts will be guided by other interests, a diplomatic source says. Firstly, if the alternative option were chosen, it would be France, through the French computer services company Atos, which would provide the technical implementation of the system, whereas, the European Commission, which is handling the contract for the implementation of SIS II, is currently in contact with HP/Steria. France's position might also be explained by Germany's support for Paris, rather than Tallinn, as the base for the agency for the long-term management of large-scale information systems in Justice, Freedom and Security. For the moment, Germany, Austria and France cannot form a blocking minority. A second trial (Milestone 2), success in which is also required for the continued implementation of SIS II, is scheduled to take place before the end of the year. (B.C./transl.rt)