The new European corps border guards and coastguards will be operational by the end of 2016. This is to protect EU external borders, the Slovak Prime Minister, Robert Fico, said on Czech television (CT) yesterday (Sunday). “The plan is very clear: to implement the European corps of border guards and coast guards before the end of the year, with all that this implies,” said Mr Fico, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency.
“Every legislative approach on the subject has been carried out.” He noted this before adding that his country would do everything in its power to achieve this objective.
Mr Fico was speaking two days after the summit of European leaders in Bratislava, the priorities of which were dominated by the protection of external borders, the fight against terrorism and the relaunch of European defence.
“The summit showed that when the issue is a migration wave, EU policy has failed,” Mr Fico opened.
He continued, “It is, as we said from the beginning (within the Visegrad group which brings together Hungary, Polond, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, editor’s note). We should protect external borders and not allow the entry of illegal migrants. It is the only way.”
“They indeed criticised us for that. Now it has become the official EU line,” the head of the Slovak government stated.
The President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, called last week for the rapid implementation of the European corps of border guards.
“I wish to see the deployment from October of at least 200 border guards and 50 additional vehicles on the external Bulgarian borders” with Turkey, he requested with immediate effect, during his annual State of the [European] Union address.
The Brussels Times
