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Government of Montenegro: Joint action plan on combating terrorism in WB countries signed at EU-Western Balkans forum in Tirana
EU-Western Balkans Ministerial Forum on Justice and Home Affairs, Photo: PR Service Government of Montenegro
Tirana,
Albania (5 October 2018) -- Effective border management and the fight
against illegal migration, radicalisation and terrorism remain
priorities for both EU and the Western Balkan countries, the EU-Western
Balkans Ministerial Forum on Justice and Home Affairs, taking place in
Tirana, underlined.
The
panel dedicated to migration and border management, chaired by Minister
of the Interior of Austria Herbert Kickl, recognised the significance of
the joint action of the countries of the Western Balkans and the
European Union in terms of more intensive exchange of operational data,
both through regional initiatives and through the institutions and
agencies of the European Union for law enforcement and migration policy.
Today's
meeting was an opportunity Montenegro's Interior Minister Mevludin
Nuhodžić to inform his counterparts about the activities undertaken by
Montenegro regarding normative and operational basis in the previous
period, but also to raise issues related to the return of illegal
migrants and the challenges that accompany this issue. In that regard,
he pointed to the lack of mechanisms for positive identification of
migrants, which mostly come from countries outside our region and who
often do not have any identification documents. Minister Nuhodžić said
that it is necessary to work on strengthening the model for cooperation
with non-regional countries or countries of origin of these migrants in
order to shorten the process of identifying and increasing the
possibilities for their successful return.
European
Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos pledged support for
the speedy implementation of activities to sign the agreement between
Montenegro and the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (FRONTEX).
At
the forum organised within Austria's presidency of the European Union,
the ministers pointed to the importance of joint operations related to
the seizure of arms and narcotics, and the panel devoted to security,
police cooperation and the fight against terrorism particularly
emphasised the strengthening of cooperation with EUROPOL in order to
adequately respond to the challenges of terrorism and radicalisation.
Furthermore, the Western Balkan countries voiced expectations for
further financial support from the European Commission through
pre-accession funds.
Participants
of today's gathering also signed the Joint Action Plan on Combating
Terrorism, which defines common goals that the six partner countries of
the Western Balkans will implement with the support of the European
Union. The main objectives outlined in this Action Plan refer to the
harmonisation of the legal and institutional framework with adequate EU
instruments, effective prevention and combating violent extremism,
intensive information sharing and operational cooperation, as well as
capacity building to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism
and strengthening protection of citizens and infrastructure.
Source: Link
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