News, Nannette Cazaubon

Schengen Area Lifting of border controls with Croatia

During the Home Affairs Council of 8th December, EU Ministers adopted a decision on the full application of the Schengen acquis in Croatia. This means that from 1st January 2023, checks on persons at internal land and sea borders between Croatia and the other countries in the Schengen area will be lifted. Checks at internal air borders will be lifted from 26th March 2023.

Following the decision, Vít Rakušan, Czech Minister of Interior, said: “I am very pleased that during the Czech Presidency, Croatia was able to take two important steps in its European integration by joining both the euro and the Schengen areas. (…) I will continue to work hard to ensure that we can welcome Bulgaria and Romania into the Schengen family in the near future”. Croatia will also start to issue Schengen visas from 1st January 2023 and will be able to make full use of the Schengen Information System.

photo: MasterSergeant, adobe.stock.com

Web Schengen Area: https://bit.ly/3FoxeCM

EU Presidency Sweden presents its priorities for 2023

In a speech in the Riksdag on 14th December, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced the priorities of the forthcoming Swedish EU Presidency. “Sweden is taking over the Presidency at a time when the European Union is facing unprecedented challenges. A greener, more secure and freer Europe is the foundation of our priorities”, he said. The four priorities of the Swedish Pres- Minister Jessika Roswall walking from the Swedish idency are: parliament after the press conference on the priori• Security – unity ties of the EU Presidency photo: ©Axel Öberg • Resilience – competitiveness • Prosperity – green & energy transition • Democratic values and the rule of law – the EU’s foundation The Minister for EU Affairs and for Nordic Cooperation, Jessika Roswall, stated that “this government will make Sweden’s work in the EU a top priority. It is in Sweden’s interests to maintain unity in the EU and advance issues that require joint solutions.”

Ukraine Council adopts €18bn assistance to Ukraine

On 10th December, the Council of the European Union (EU) agreed on a legislative package providing a structural solution to financially support Ukraine in 2023 with a loan of €18bn. “The legislation which we adopted today means that Ukraine can count on regular financial help from the EU throughout 2023”, the Minister of Finance of the Czech Republic, Zbyněk Stanjura, said. The aim of the “Regulation establishing an instrument for providing support to Ukraine for 2023” is to help finance Ukraine’s immediate needs, the rehabilitation of critical infrastructure and to provide initial support towards sustainable post-war reconstruction with a perspective to supporting Ukraine on its path towards European integration. The loans to Ukraine will have a 10-year grace period and a major part of the interest will be covered by Member States via external assigned revenues. The package was first opposed by Hungary with the aim of putting pressure on Brussels for the release of €7.5bn in cohesion funds and €5.8bn from the pandemic recovery fund (PRF) that were frozen because of Hungary’s violations of the rule of law. Victor Orbán’s government finally lifted its veto on 12th December following a deal with EU countries to lower the amount of a proposed funding freeze. Web https://bit.ly/3hsxVmU

Publications UNICRI report on the impact of the conflict in Ukraine

The United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) issued a report assessing the impact of the conflict in Ukraine and its implications for organised crime and security-related issues for neighbouring countries, with a focus on Moldova. The focus is put on organised crime and illicit trafficking (including trafficking in persons, drugs, arms, illicit tobacco, and other goods); cybercrimes and fraud; disinformation and propaganda; and Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) threats. The report states that the conflict in Ukraine has already altered the regional security landscape and will have lasting consequences on the international order. It calls for urgent regional cooperation as the multiple security challenges are common across the region. In response to transnational crime groups, border law enforcement agencies need to improve their cooperation and communication across borders and in the region to share real-time information and intelligence on criminal activities and trafficking routes.

The Conflict in Ukraine and its Impact on Organized Crime and Security A SNAPSHOT OF KEY TRENDS NOVEMBER 2022

Web Report: https://bit.ly/3PtPDml

Security and Defence 21st Berlin Security Conference

The 2022 Berlin Security Conference (BSC) took place from 30th November to 1st December with around 1500 participants. This year, Norway was partner country of the event which was held in the shadow of the ongoing Russian aggression of Ukraine. Speakers include the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr German Chancellor Olof Scholz at the 2022 Berlin Støre, the German Defence Minis- Security Conference photo: © Boris Trenkel ter Christine Lambrecht as well as several Ministers from other EU Member States. Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of NATO also delivered a speech. He said that “President Putin’s war of aggression has shattered peace in Europe with long-lasting shockwaves for global security”, and he added that “we should not underestimate Russia.” Also, Olaf Scholz stressed that the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the end of February had dramatically changed the European security environment. He underlined that “the foundations of our security remained solid based on the transatlantic friendship and close collaboration within the European Union”.

Web https://www.euro-defence.eu/

EU CBRN Centres of Excellence Mobile laboratory units deployed in Uzbekistan

A field exercise in the deployment of mobile laboratory units was carried out from 7th to 18th November in Uzbekistan including a training for response teams held in Bukhara on 16th November. While the outbreak of an infectious disease poses a substantial risk for public health, especially in remote The Uzbek town Bukhara, where parts of the field rural areas, qualified laboratory spe- exercise where organised cialists and diagnostic capabilities photo: © Евгений Вершинин, stock.adobe.com are mostly located in major urban centres. However, the Covid-19 pandemic crisis has demonstrated the importance to made available such capabilities in remote areas to support the population and prevent potential larger outbreaks. The aim of the field training exercise was to support the Republic of Uzbekistan with such capacity needs. It was conducted within the framework of Project 53 of the European Union Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Centres of Excellence (EU CBRN CoE) Initiative. Bakhtiyor Gulyamov, Head of the Regional Secretariat for Central Asia of the EU CBRN CoE Initiative, and Chairman of the Committee for Industrial Safety of the Republic of Uzbekistan said in his opening remarks: “As the ongoing pandemic has shown, with infectious diseases, nobody is safe until everybody is safe. The mobile laboratories will enhance the government’s ability to react to biological threats wherever they arise and to leave no one behind.”

Web https://cbrn-risk-mitigation.network.europa.eu

Security of critical services Council decides to strengthen resilience of critical entities

On 8th December, the Council adopted a directive and a recommendation to reduce the vulnerabilities and strengthen the resilience of critical entities. Latter provide services that are crucial for the maintenance of vital societal functions, economic activities, public health and safety, and the environment. They need to be protected against and respond to hybrid attacks, natural disasters, terrorist threats and public health emergencies. The directive adopted covers critical entities in sectors, such as energy, transport, health, drinking water, waste water and space. EU Member States will need to develop a national strategy to identify such critical entities, to enhance their resilience and to carry out a risk assessment at least every four years. Against the background of the recent acts of sabotage against the Nord Stream pipeline and the new risks arising from Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the Council recommendation focuses on strengthening the resilience of critical infrastructure. Member States are invited to update their risk assessments and encouraged to conduct stress tests of entities operating critical infrastructure such as the energy sector. They are to develop, in cooperation with the Commission, a blueprint for a coordinated response to disruptions of critical infrastructure with significant cross-border relevance.

Web Directive: https://bit.ly/3W0oWZ7 Recommendation: https://bit.ly/3G5lKpj

CBRN protection

Putin’s war in Ukraine affects the world. Ukrainian people continue to flee their homes and seek refuge in Europe, supply bottlenecks lead to record level food prices and famine in Africa, and global energy markets are widely impacted. What’s more, while NATO and Europe are providing military, humanitarian and financial aid to Ukraine, the Russian dictator continuously tries to blackmail the world with its weapons of mass destruction. Against this worrying background, the protection against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threats is taking centre stage!