EU home affairs ministers meeting in Luxembourg have welcomed the establishment of the new European Border and Coast Guard Agency, which was officially launched in Bulgaria on 6 October. The new agency provides a significant step forward in securing borders, several ministers said. Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos stated that the member states have to turn this progress into reality. “We’re not there yet. I’m about to call on them to provide the technical support and the personnel” required, the commissioner said at the end of the day
“We asked for all commitments to be honoured”, commented Slovak Home Affairs Minister Robert Kalinak. The success of the new agency will depend on contributions of border guards and coast guards from the member states (a permanent reserve of 1,500 guards). On 18 October, the agency will set out its operating plans, including vulnerability tests. Slovakia, the minister said, is about to send 50 police officers and an aeroplane to Bulgaria on the border monitoring mission. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)