A new direction for the Schengen area through a ‘Schengen Council’ that will be much more political than the current ‘mixed committee’, which already brings together the member countries of the free movement area, and which is able to react more quickly to crises at the external borders or other challenges to the area:
that is what French President Emmanuel Macron proposed on Wednesday evening to the meeting of EU Ministers of the Interior in Tourcoing, and then in Lille on Thursday 3 February.
It was a discussion which continued on Thursday morning and resulted in “unanimity” over this new platform, reported the French Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, on Thursday evening. He also plans to convene this first format on 3 March.
On Wednesday evening, the French President explained to the Ministers of the Interior that this political forum would meet regularly and as soon as became necessary and that it would quickly adopt decisions, for example in the event of sudden crises such as the one relating to Belarus at the end of 2021.
Each country could also report on the difficulties they encountered, both in relation to arrivals in frontline countries and with regard to secondary movements in other Member States.
One of the ideas put forward by the French Presidency is, among other things, to establish a ‘Schengen barometer’ with indicators relating to migratory pressure at external borders, the pressure of secondary movements, and the health situation. This barometer would also be colour-coded to determine the specific measures that are to be taken.
This notion of strengthening the political direction would be unanimous and the idea would be to already have this barometer on 3 March.
According to a discussion paper of the French Presidency of the EU Council, ministerial discussions on Schengen, which are organised both between EU members and with associated countries have been, to date, too often “theoretical” and “general” while they are now in need of an “operational governance component. Assessments made of problems in the Schengen area are also too “technical” and often fail to distinguish between minor crises and events of major significance to the area.
Although the current reforms of the Schengen evaluation mechanism and the Schengen Borders Code that were presented in June and December 2021 respectively are a step in the right direction and partly address these shortcomings, the French Presidency believes that it is necessary to go a little further and to give this new Schengen body the capacity for political impetus.
The proposal was welcomed by the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, who recognised the need “to strengthen the political governance of Schengen”.
She said that the EU now has “serious vulnerabilities. Last year, Frontex estimated that 39 million people entered the Schengen area without being checked against the Schengen Information System”.
The commissioner has also sounded out ministers about Frontex and she wants to strengthen its political governance, suggesting a meeting take place at least once a year between the agency’s board and EU Ministers of the Interior.
Germany will also support the proposal to strengthen the governance of Schengen, commented German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on Thursday morning, when she said it was important that Schengen countries work “more closely together”. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)