"Emergency border squads", Euro-style

This is not a joke:

A plan to create rapid reaction teams of border guards to deal with European Union immigration crises has been unveiled by the European Commission.

The teams would be assembled by the EU border security agency, Frontex, from lists of experts in member states...

The proposals approved by the European Commission on Wednesday say it would be up to each member state to decide whether to make experts available...

Mr Frattini said the aim would be to have a pool of 250 or 300 ready to be called up in emergencies, including experts in first aid, translation, risk assessment and the identification of people.

All border guards would wear their own national uniforms - with an armband identifying them as members of a joint EU rapid reaction team - but would be temporarily under the control of the host state.

The Commission says that planning such an operation is currently complicated by a muddle of different national laws in each member state governing what tasks foreign border guards can fulfil...

Immigration_euro · Thu, 07/20/2006 - 01:40 · · Importance: 1

Comments

The underlying problem is the lax deportation and asylum practices of most EU countries. Not to mention outright amnesties. As a political/economic entity, the boundaries of the EU are huge -- it will not be possible to secure them in this way. That part of the incentive to come illegally that such laxness adds must be eliminated.

Posted by: eh at Jul 20, 2006 5:53 AM

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