[belta.by] The State Border Committee of Belarus and the European Union border protection agency Frontex will sign an agreement on cooperation, Chairman of the State Border Guard Committee of Belarus Igor Rachkovsky told media.
Frontex Executive Director Ilkka Laitinen is expected to arrive at the facilitated border checkpoint Nervelishki (Lithuania) to sign the document.
According to Igor Rachkovsky, the State Border Guard Committee of Belarus has been preparing to sign the agreement for two years and a half. The Belarus-EU border is 1,250 km long and Belarus ensures the security of the European Union border in the central area. It would be logical for Belarus to become a full-fledged partner of Frontex. With the agreement signed, the Belarusian border service will be able to officially work with Frontex, participate in joint projects, share information at the international level, said the head of the Belarusian border guard.
According to Igor Rachkovsky, the agreement will allow Belarus to enter Frontex as an observer. A representative of the State Border Guard Committee is supposed to be part of the staff of the Belarusian embassy in Warsaw in the future. Simultaneously he will act as a representative of Belarus in Frontex as the agency is headquartered in Warsaw.
The agreement will also allow the State Border Guard Committee of Belarus to participate in joint border operations, international projects, including international technical aid programs. Organizing training courses for border guard officers of European Union member-states at the Belarusian K9 training facility is Smorgon is a promising avenue. The implementation of educational programs for border guard agencies of Asian countries on the basis of Belarusian border guard institutions can be another area of cooperation to explore. In the far future Belarus-Frontex cooperation may produce common databases.
Yuri Fedorov, Head of the International Cooperation Office of the State Border Guard Committee, remarked that signing the agreement is a landmark event for Belarus. It testifies to the recognition of merits of the Belarusian border guard in ensuring the security of the European Union’s external border.
The European Union border protection agency Frontex includes 27 countries. It coordinates European Union border security efforts.
