The European Border and Coast Guard Agency was officially launched today, September 6, less than a year after it was first proposed by the European Commission.
The launch event took place at the Kapitan Andreevo Border Checkpoint at the Bulgarian external border with Turkey in the presence of Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, executive director of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency Fabrice Leggeri, EU interior ministers and other senior officials.
Building on the foundations of Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency will closely monitor the EU’s external borders and work together with member states to quickly identify and address any potential security threats to the EU’s external borders.
Commissioner Avramopoulos said: “Today is a milestone in the history of European border management. From now onwards, the external EU border of one Member State is the external border of all Member States – both legally and operationally.”
Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico , holder of the rotating presidency of the Council, said: “This is a tangible outcome of the joint commitment agreed in the Bratislava Roadmap, as well as a practical display of unity among Member States. It will help us to get back to Schengen.”