CIAO DATE: 07/02

Policy Alternatives to Schengen Border Controls on the Future EU External Frontier: Proceedings of an Expert Seminar

Summary

The seminar brought together 38 distinguished experts from EU countries, candidate and non-candidate countries to discuss the impact of the extension of Schengen border control regimes on EU external relations and the situation of Central and Eastern Europe and to identify alternative policy options.

On the first day, a broad-ranging discussion took place, chaired and introduced by Jakub Boratynski, Director of the European Programme, in the morning and by Michael Emerson, Senior Research Fellow at CEPS, in the afternoon, on border controls on the eastern frontier in the setting of geopolitical relations. The main elements of a joint position called into question the mechanical application of EU/Schengen border controls (visa regimes, in particular) to new external borders and outlined alternative policy options. Given the diversity of backgrounds of the participants in the meeting, very different, indeed irreconcilable, views were expressed. Nonetheless, there was broad agreement between the representatives of CEPS and the Stefan Batory Foundation that the imposition by candidate countries of visas on nationals of their eastern neighbours (Ukraine, Belarus and Russia) would create practical and psychological problems that may be detrimental to good relations. It was also agreed that the desirable long-term objective was visa-free movement by nationals of neighbouring countries into the EU. The main issue is how we progress from the current position to the long-term goal. Stefan Batory and CEPS undertook to draw up an agreed statement to be circulated later. This joint position will be developed on the basis of this report: an open letter, supplemented with a background policy paper, will be presented to the EU, governments and the media with the intention of stimulating debate and challenging simplistic views of the effects of the enlargement process.

Full-text of this paper (PDF document, 34 pages, 117.4kb)