Frontex
Encyclopedia
Frontex is the European Union agency
for external border
security. It is responsible for co-ordinating the activities of the national border guard
s in ensuring the security of the EU's borders
with non-member states. Frontex is headquartered in Warsaw
, Poland
.
Frontex was established by Council Regulation (EC) 2007/2004. The agency started to be operational on October 3, 2005 and was the first EU agency to be based in one of the new EU states—from 2004.
s and to coordinate operational cooperation between Member States in the field of external border management. While it remains the task of each member state to control its own borders, the Agency is vested with the function to ensure that they all do so with the same high standard of efficiency.
The Agency is managed by its Executive Director, Ilkka Laitinen
. The agency initially struggled to recruit staff due to its location in Warsaw
, which offered lower pay than some other cities, and the unclear agency mandate.
Special European forces of rapidly deployable border guards, called Rapid Border Intervention Teams (RABIT), were created by EU interior minister
s in April 2007 to assist in border control, particularly on Europe's southern coastlines
. Frontex's European Patrols Network began work in the Canary Islands
in May 2007 and armed officers were deployed to the Greco-Turkish border in October 2010.
Patrols carried out by Frontex are contributed to not only by EU members, but by other Schengen area
countries such as Iceland
, which sent the coast guard vessel Ægir to Frontex patrols in the Atlantic ocean (south of Canary islands) and the Mediterranean in 2010. Frontex uses the EU-funded Sea Horse advanced satellite system to track ships.
.
According to European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE)
and British Refugee Council
in written evidence submitted to the UK House of Lords
inquiry, Frontex fails to demonstrate adequate consideration of international and European asylum and human rights law including the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and EU law in respect of access to asylum and the prohibition of refoulement.
In addition ECRE and British Refugee Council have expressed a worry with the lack of clarity regarding Frontex accountability for ensuring compliance with international and EC legal obligations by Member States involved in Frontex coordinated operations. This is compounded by the lack of transparency, and the absence of independent monitoring and democratic accountability of the Agency.
military radar issued a warning to a Latvia
n helicopter patrolling in the eastern Aegean
—part of the EU's Frontex programme to combat illegal immigration—to leave the area. The Turkish General Staff reported that the Latvian Frontex aircraft had violated Turkish airspace west of Didim
.
According to a Hellenic Air Force
announcement, the incident occurred as the Frontex helicopter—identified as an Italian-made Agusta A109
—was patrolling in Greek air space near the small isle of Farmakonisi, which lies on a favorite route used by migrant smuggler
s ferrying mostly Third World
migrants into Greece and the EU from the opposite Turkish coastline. Frontex officials stated that they simply ignored the Turkish warnings as they were not in Turkish airspace and continued their duties. Frontex later took photographs of the Turkish Coast Guard escorting illegal immigrants
towards Greek waters and the photos accompanied by written evidence were submitted to EU authorities.
Another incident took place on October 2009 in the aerial area above the eastern Aegean sea, off the island of Lesbos. On 20 November 2009, the Turkish General Staff issued a press note alleging that an Estonian Border Guard aircraft Let
L-410 UVP taking off from Kos
on a Frontex mission had violated Turkish airspace west of Söke
.
has a Coast Guard Dornier 228 aircraft with air force crew and Portugal
an air force C-295MPA
stationed at Malta
.
Agencies of the European Union
An agency of the European Union is a decentralised body of the European Union , which are distinct from the institutions. Agencies are established to accomplish specific tasks. Each agency has its own legal personality...
for external border
Border
Borders define geographic boundaries of political entities or legal jurisdictions, such as governments, sovereign states, federated states and other subnational entities. Some borders—such as a state's internal administrative borders, or inter-state borders within the Schengen Area—are open and...
security. It is responsible for co-ordinating the activities of the national border guard
Border guard
The border guard, frontier guard, border patrol, border police, or frontier police of a country is a national security agency that performs border control, i.e., enforces the security of the country's national borders....
s in ensuring the security of the EU's borders
Countries bordering the European Union
This is a list of countries bordering the European Union, and its predecessor the European Communities, both at its current geographical extent and after all previous rounds of enlargement.- 2007 to present :...
with non-member states. Frontex is headquartered in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
Frontex was established by Council Regulation (EC) 2007/2004. The agency started to be operational on October 3, 2005 and was the first EU agency to be based in one of the new EU states—from 2004.
Responsibilities
Frontex' mission is to help EU Member States implement EU rules on external border controlBorder control
Border controls are measures used by a country to monitor or regulate its borders.The control of the flow of many people, animals and goods across a border may be controlled by government Customs services. Security is enforced by various kinds of Border Guards and Coast Guards...
s and to coordinate operational cooperation between Member States in the field of external border management. While it remains the task of each member state to control its own borders, the Agency is vested with the function to ensure that they all do so with the same high standard of efficiency.
Staff and resources
Ilkka Laitinen
Ilkka Laitinen is the Executive Director of Frontex, the European Union’s border protection agency.He served in the Finnish Border Guard in 1982 and since 1985. He rose to the rank of colonel in 2004 and has held a wide variety of national and EU jobs. He was appointed as the first head of Frontex...
. The agency initially struggled to recruit staff due to its location in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, which offered lower pay than some other cities, and the unclear agency mandate.
| Airplanes | 20 |
|---|---|
| Helicopter Helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally... s |
~30 |
| Vessels Ship Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing,... |
~100 |
Special European forces of rapidly deployable border guards, called Rapid Border Intervention Teams (RABIT), were created by EU interior minister
Interior minister
An interior ministry is a government ministry typically responsible for policing, national security, and immigration matters. The ministry is often headed by a minister of the interior or minister of home affairs...
s in April 2007 to assist in border control, particularly on Europe's southern coastlines
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
. Frontex's European Patrols Network began work in the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
in May 2007 and armed officers were deployed to the Greco-Turkish border in October 2010.
Patrols carried out by Frontex are contributed to not only by EU members, but by other Schengen area
Schengen Area
The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985...
countries such as Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, which sent the coast guard vessel Ægir to Frontex patrols in the Atlantic ocean (south of Canary islands) and the Mediterranean in 2010. Frontex uses the EU-funded Sea Horse advanced satellite system to track ships.
Criticism
In an NGO Statement on International Protection presented at the UNHCR Standing Committee in 2008 a broad coalition of non-governmental organisations have expressed their concern, that much of the rescue work by Frontex is in fact incidental to a deterrence campaign so broad and, at times, so undiscriminating, that directly and through third countries – intentionally or not – asylum-seekers are being blocked from claiming protection under the 1951 Refugee ConventionConvention Relating to the Status of Refugees
The United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees is an international convention that defines who is a refugee, and sets out the rights of individuals who are granted asylum and the responsibilities of nations that grant asylum. The Convention also sets out which people do not...
.
According to European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE)
European Council on Refugees and Exiles
The European Council on Refugees and Exiles is a pan-European network of refugee-assisting non-governmental organisations that promotes a humane and generous European asylum policy...
and British Refugee Council
Refugee Council
The Refugee Council is the United Kingdom's leading organisation working with refugees and asylum seekers. The organisation provides support and advice to refugees and asylum seekers, as well as support for other refugee and asylum seeker organisations...
in written evidence submitted to the UK House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
inquiry, Frontex fails to demonstrate adequate consideration of international and European asylum and human rights law including the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and EU law in respect of access to asylum and the prohibition of refoulement.
In addition ECRE and British Refugee Council have expressed a worry with the lack of clarity regarding Frontex accountability for ensuring compliance with international and EC legal obligations by Member States involved in Frontex coordinated operations. This is compounded by the lack of transparency, and the absence of independent monitoring and democratic accountability of the Agency.
Turkish incidents
In September 2009, a TurkishTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
military radar issued a warning to a Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
n helicopter patrolling in the eastern Aegean
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
—part of the EU's Frontex programme to combat illegal immigration—to leave the area. The Turkish General Staff reported that the Latvian Frontex aircraft had violated Turkish airspace west of Didim
Didim
Didim, home of the antique city of Didyma with its ruined Temple of Apollo, is a small town, popular seaside holiday resort and district of Aydın Province on the Aegean coast of western Turkey, from the city of Aydın.-Geography:...
.
According to a Hellenic Air Force
Hellenic Air Force
The Hellenic Air Force, abbreviated to HAF is the air force of Greece. The mission of the Hellenic Air Force is to guard and protect Greek airspace, provide air assistance and support to the Hellenic Army and the Hellenic Navy, as well as the provision of humanitarian aid in Greece and around the...
announcement, the incident occurred as the Frontex helicopter—identified as an Italian-made Agusta A109
Agusta A109
The AgustaWestland AW109 is a light-weight, twin-engine, eight-seat multi-purpose helicopter built by the Anglo-Italian manufacturer AgustaWestland...
—was patrolling in Greek air space near the small isle of Farmakonisi, which lies on a favorite route used by migrant smuggler
People smuggling
People smuggling is defined as "the facilitation, transportation, attempted transportation or illegal entry of a person or persons across an international border, in violation of one or more countries laws, either clandestinely or through deception, such as the use of fraudulent documents"...
s ferrying mostly Third World
Third World
The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO , or communism and the Soviet Union...
migrants into Greece and the EU from the opposite Turkish coastline. Frontex officials stated that they simply ignored the Turkish warnings as they were not in Turkish airspace and continued their duties. Frontex later took photographs of the Turkish Coast Guard escorting illegal immigrants
Illegal immigration
Illegal immigration is the migration into a nation in violation of the immigration laws of that jurisdiction. Illegal immigration raises many political, economical and social issues and has become a source of major controversy in developed countries and the more successful developing countries.In...
towards Greek waters and the photos accompanied by written evidence were submitted to EU authorities.
Another incident took place on October 2009 in the aerial area above the eastern Aegean sea, off the island of Lesbos. On 20 November 2009, the Turkish General Staff issued a press note alleging that an Estonian Border Guard aircraft Let
Let Kunovice
Aircraft Industries, a.s., operating as Let Kunovice, is a Czech civil aircraft manufacturer. Its most successful design has been the L-410 Turbolet, of which more than 1000 units have been built...
L-410 UVP taking off from Kos
Kos
Kos or Cos is a Greek island in the south Sporades group of the Dodecanese, next to the Gulf of Gökova/Cos. It measures by , and is from the coast of Bodrum, Turkey and the ancient region of Caria. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Kos peripheral unit, which is...
on a Frontex mission had violated Turkish airspace west of Söke
Söke
Söke is a town and a large district of Aydın Province in the Aegean region of western Turkey, south-west of the city of Aydın, near the Aegean coast. It had 68,020 population in 2010.- Geography :...
.
Operation Hermes
Operation Hermes is the surveillance of the Mediterranean between Italy and North Africa. In this period the no-fly zone with Libya came into effect and combat operations started on 20 March 2011. The NetherlandsNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
has a Coast Guard Dornier 228 aircraft with air force crew and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
an air force C-295MPA
EADS CASA C-295
The EADS CASA C-295 is a twin-turboprop tactical military transport aircraft manufactured by Airbus Military in Spain.-Design and development:...
stationed at Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
.
See also
- Schengen AgreementSchengen AgreementThe Schengen Agreement is a treaty signed on 14 June 1985 near the town of Schengen in Luxembourg, between five of the ten member states of the European Economic Community. It was supplemented by the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement 5 years later...
- Schengen Information SystemSchengen Information SystemThe Schengen Information System , is a governmental database used by European countries to maintain and distribute information on individuals and pieces of property of interest. The intended uses of this system are for national security, border control and law enforcement purposes...
- EurodacEurodacEURODAC, which stands for European Dactyloscopy, is the European fingerprint database for identifying asylum seekers and irregular border-crossers. Asylum applicants and irregular border-crossers over the age of 14 have their fingerprints taken as a matter of European Community law...
- Schengen Information System
- Area of freedom, security and justiceArea of freedom, security and justiceThe area of freedom, security and justice is a collection of European Union policies designed to ensure security, rights and free movement within the EU. As internal borders have been removed within the EU, cross border police cooperation had to increase to counter cross border crime, and thus...
- European Commissioner for Home Affairs
- Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home AffairsCommittee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home AffairsThe Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs is a standing committee of the European Parliament.-External links:*...
- Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal MattersPolice and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal MattersThe third of the three pillars of the European Union was Justice and Home Affairs , which was shrunk and renamed Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters in 2003. The pillar existed between 1993 and 2009, when it was absorbed into a consolidated EU structure.The pillar focused on...
- Geography of the European UnionGeography of the European UnionThe European Union primarily occupies a large portion of Western and Central Europe, covering 4,422,773 km2 . Its European territory extends northeast to Finland, northwest to Ireland, southeast to Cyprus and southwest to Iberia...
- Countries bordering the European UnionCountries bordering the European UnionThis is a list of countries bordering the European Union, and its predecessor the European Communities, both at its current geographical extent and after all previous rounds of enlargement.- 2007 to present :...
- Aegean disputeAegean disputeThe Aegean dispute is a set of interrelated controversial issues between Greece and Turkey over sovereignty and related rights in the area of the Aegean Sea. This set of conflicts has had a large effect on Greek-Turkish relations since the 1970s. It has twice led to crises coming close to the...
External links
- Founding act of Frontex (PDFPortable Document FormatPortable Document Format is an open standard for document exchange. This file format, created by Adobe Systems in 1993, is used for representing documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems....
) - Access to Protection in Europe—European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE)