Brussels, 03/08/2010 (Agence Europe) - The first decentralised arm of the European external border cooperation agency, Frontex, whose head office is in Warsaw, is to officially open on 1 October in Piraeus. The Greek borders are a definite challenge faced by the EU today, the executive director for the agency, Ilkka Laitinen, said during the signing, on Monday 2 August, of the agreement for the creation of the Piraeus office. There will be 13 personnel employed in Piraeus from different member states. The aim of the office is to ensure surveillance of the borders of South-East Europe, namely Malta, Italy, Greece and Cyprus. Laitinen underlined that his organisation will do its best to encourage member states to not only take part in the operation but also to show resolve when it comes to protecting the external borders of Europe, ANA reports. The Frontex office will work as a pilot scheme for the next two years and its results will be taken into account when taking decisions on the creation of other operational arms in Europe. Michalis Chryssochoïdis, Minister for the Protection of Citizens, stressed that, with the creation of this new office, Greece is significantly stepping up efforts deployed against people smuggling networks and against illegal immigration. “The creation of the Piraeus office shows true innovation in developing the Europe's effort to secure its borders”, he pointed out. The creation of the operational arm in Piraeus had been decided in February this year, in Madrid. (B.C./transl.jl)