Dobrindt wants rapid reaction force of the EU border protection agency Frontex

According to Interior Minister Dobrindt, the European Border Guard Agency should react quickly to mass arrivals of migrants, such as in the summer in Ceuta. Otherwise, the powers of Frontex are also to be strengthened. Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) is calling for significantly more powers for the European border protection agency Frontex - in crisis situations and when returning migrants in general. Before the "Munich Migration Meeting", a meeting of 17 European interior ministers in Munich, the CSU politician pleaded for a significant extension of the mandate, also for exceptional situations such as the mass arrival of migrants in the Spanish North Africa exclave Ceuta in the summer.

For such cases, there should be a separate Frontex force that can support affected Member States in the short term within 24 hours, Dobrindt said. A few days ago, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had already proposed a new European crisis response framework for such situations - Dobrindt expressly welcomed the initiative: "A new European migration crisis mechanism is needed." Dobrindt: "Extended mandate of Frontex" In general, Dobrindt wants to make greater use of the European border protection agency Frontex for returns. "We are convinced that we can use Frontex more in return procedures," said Dobrindt at the beginning of the Munich meeting. According to the Federal Minister of the Interior, the agency should in future support "organising return procedures already in transit countries" - i.e. in countries outside the European Union.

"Of course, always with the willingness of these countries as well," Dobrindt added. "And we want to continue to make greater use of Frontex when it comes to Dublin procedures within the European Union," Dobrindt continued. The Dublin procedure checks which European state is responsible for examining an asylum application. Dobrindt spoke of a "further development" of Frontex, it was also about "an extended mandate of Frontex".

This was "urgently needed". Frontex is to organise transfers to third countries. On Friday, Munich's Mercury reported on the planned extension of Frontex's mandate. According to this, the Border Protection Agency should in future also be responsible for the return of migrants directly from border procedures as well as for repatriations from transit states that are not EU members - such as Serbia, Kosovo or Albania. In the future, Frontex should also organise the transfer of rejected asylum seekers to deportation centres in third countries outside the EU.

Germany is currently preparing such deportation centres with the EU countries Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Greece. The aim is to conclude an agreement with a third country by the end of the year. Discussions took place in particular with Rwanda in the summer, but other countries in Africa or Asia could also be considered.