The heads of Frontex, the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) and representative of the European Commission met in Warsaw on 25 May to discuss multipurpose maritime operations and co-operation in the area of maritime surveillance, information sharing and capacity building.
Frontex Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri hosted Pascal Savouret, the Executive Director of EFCA and Markku Mylly, the Executive Director of EMSA at the 5th meeting of the Contact Group on European Coast Guard Functions, a pilot project that aims to enhance effective cooperation between the three agencies active in the maritime domain.
“Last December, the European Commission proposed the creation of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency. This proposal, to be adopted this summer, emphasises closer cooperation among the agencies. Frontex, EMSA and EFCA are already testing new ways of working together, in particular the concept of multipurpose operations where assets deployed in border control operations can contribute to environmental monitoring and fisheries control,” said Leggeri.
To allow the agencies to test its concept in a real operational setting, Frontex adjusted the operational plan of its operation Triton in Italy to allow cooperation between EMSA and EFCA. This permitted a deployment of an EFCA inspector on board a vessel and patrol plane deployed in Triton.
Similar activities are to be implemented this year in other Frontex maritime operations. Further steps will include exchange of staff between the agencies.
Many Frontex
operations already have a multipurpose character, where in addition to
detection of irregular migrants Frontex vessels and planes detect drug and
weapon smuggling and track illegal fishing and reports oil spills.