5 Justice and home affairs cooperation
within the Eastern Partnership
| (33181)
14864/11
COM(11) 564
| Commission Communication: Cooperation in the Area of Justice and Home Affairs within the Eastern Partnership
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| Legal base | —
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| Document originated | 26 September 2011
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| Deposited in Parliament | 3 October 2011
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| Department | Home Office
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| Basis of consideration | EM of 17 October 2011
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| Previous Committee Report | None
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| To be discussed in Council | 27/28 October 2011
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| Committee's assessment | Politically important
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| Committee's decision | Not cleared; further information requested
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Background
THE EASTERN PARTNERSHIP
5.1 In May 2009, EU Member States and Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus,
Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine established the Eastern
Partnership. It provides a multilateral framework for developing
deeper political ties and economic integration between the EU
and Eastern partner countries. The Partnership is governed by
the principles of differentiation and conditionality. Partner
countries which demonstrate a commitment to "the principles
of international law and to fundamental values, including democracy,
the rule of law and the respect for human rights and fundamental
freedoms, as well as to market economy, sustainable development
and good governance"[12]
will have the opportunity to enter into comprehensive bilateral
Association Agreements with the EU.
5.2 Mobility is an important element of the Eastern
Partnership. The EU and partner countries contemplate that opportunities
for mobility will be developed initially through visa facilitation
and readmission agreements, with full visa liberalisation remaining
"a long term goal for individual partner countries on a case-by-case
basis, provided that conditions for well-managed and secure mobility
are in place."[13]
In June 2011, the Foreign Affairs Council again emphasised that
"well-managed mobility of people is crucial for mutual understanding,
business links and economic growth both in the EU and in the partner
countries."[14]
THE STOCKHOLM PROGRAMME
5.3 The Stockholm Programme, in which the European
Council sets out the EU's priorities in the field of justice and
home affairs for the period 2010-14, lists a number of guiding
principles for developing the external dimension of EU justice
and home affairs policies. These include close cooperation with
the EU's neighbours and a commitment actively to develop and promote
European and international standards. The European Council calls
specifically for "the establishment of a Human Rights Action
Plan to promote its values in the external dimension of the policies
in the area of freedom, security and justice."[15]
It also calls for an action plan to take forward justice and home
affairs cooperation with Eastern Partnership countries, adding
that justice and home affairs should be a substantial component
of future Association Agreements with these "key partners."
The Commission Communication
5.4 The Communication reiterates that enhanced mobility
within a secure and well-managed environment is a "core objective"
of the Eastern Partnership. It suggests ways in which existing
multilateral and bilateral frameworks can be developed to strengthen
political and operational cooperation between the EU and partner
countries with a view to the eventual establishment of a "Common
JHA Space between the EU and its Eastern partners."[16]
5.5 The Communication first considers the principles
which should guide cooperation on justice and home affairs and
the structures within which it should take place. It then suggests
how to strengthen JHA cooperation in a number of different areas.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
5.6 The Communication identifies four guiding principles
for justice and home affairs cooperation with Eastern Partnership
countries:
- Differentiation —
cooperation should
be based on the progress made by each partner country in implementing
its JHA reform agenda;
- Conditionality — cooperation
should be gradual and conditional on progress made in agreed areas;
- Policy coherence — any
strengthening of JHA cooperation should be coherent with all other
aspects of EU external policy; and
- Regional cooperation — promoting
regional cooperation is crucial in order to tackle cross-border
JHA challenges.
STRUCTURES FOR JHA COOPERATION
5.7 The Communication notes that all partner countries
except Belarus have developed bilateral relations with the EU
and most dialogue and cooperation on JHA matters takes place within
specialist Sub-Committees established under bilateral Political
and Cooperation Agreements (or, in the future, their successor
Association Agreements). However, there are separate bilateral
dialogues on drugs; on all aspects of migration under Mobility
Partnerships with Georgia and Moldova; and on visas and readmission
under Readmission and Visa Facilitation Agreements with Moldova,
Georgia and Ukraine.
5.8 The Communication suggests simplifying the existing
framework for regional and multilateral cooperation and introducing
an annual meeting of Eastern Partnership Ministers responsible
for justice and home affairs in order to strengthen political
guidance and coordination. It says that there should be more effective
coordination between the EU and Member States, especially with
regard to the provision of financial assistance.
STRENGTHENING JHA COOPERATION
5.9 The Communication says that the EU and Member
States should continue to support capacity building in partner
countries and the exchange of information and best practice. It
also highlights a broad range of measures which the Commission
believes should be included in future Association Agreements with
Eastern partners.
Migration, mobility and asylum
5.10 The Commission advocates greater harmonisation
of statistical indicators and methodologies as a means of ensuring
that comparable and reliable data on migration and asylum are
available to policy makers. It notes that the EU is undertaking
a study on the costs and benefits of labour migration from Eastern
partners to the EU and suggests that there is scope for increasing
the opportunities for legal migration in line with the labour
market needs of individual Member States. The Commission highlights
Mobility Partnerships as a means of increasing mobility while
also ensuring that migration is properly managed. It identifies
a particular need to facilitate the mobility of students, academics
and researchers from Eastern partners within the EU, but recognises
that measures are also needed to mitigate the risk of "brain
drain" and to promote the sustainable use of remittances
to support investment in migrants' countries of origin.
5.11 The Communication notes that Ukraine, Moldova
and Georgia have already signed Readmission and Visa Facilitation
Agreements with the EU and urges Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus
to do so. It says that the aim of visa-free travel for all Eastern
partners should be "actively pursued", but that this
should be conditional on demonstrating effective implementation
of readmission and visa facilitation agreements, as well as active
dialogue and cooperation on all aspects of justice and home affairs
cooperation. The Commission suggests that Visa Liberalisation
Action Plans developed for Ukraine and Moldova, focussing on document
security, asylum policy and border management, and measures to
tackle organised crime and human trafficking as well as respect
for fundamental rights, offer a useful model for the other Eastern
partners.
5.12 The Communication notes that there are "important
gaps" in the legislative framework governing claims for international
protection and that much more needs to be done to strengthen protection
capacities in Eastern partners and ensure that laws are implemented
effectively.
Integrated border management
5.13 The Communication notes that the EU funds a
number of integrated border management projects and that Frontex,
the EU's border agency, has signed working arrangements enabling
border guard officials from Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine
to participate as observers in operations coordinated by Frontex
and receive some training. The Commission says that similar working
arrangements should be agreed with Armenia and Azerbaijan and
that all Eastern partners should be encouraged to develop national
integrated border management strategies.
Public order and security
5.14 The Commission observes that the EU's relationships
with its Eastern partners are "of fundamental importance
in the fight against serious and organised crime and terrorism."[17]
It cites evidence from a 2009 UN Report on Trafficking in Persons
and from a recent Europol organised crime threat assessment which
indicates that a substantial number of victims and perpetrators
of human trafficking are nationals of Eastern partner countries,
and that these countries provide the base for some of the criminal
gangs involved in trafficking. The Commission says that the EU
should strengthen cooperation, particularly with a view to enhancing
the capacity of Eastern partners to provide protection and assistance
to victims of human trafficking. It should also encourage them
to ratify UN instruments for combating human trafficking.
5.15 The Communication encourages all Eastern partners
to strengthen their strategic and operational cooperation with
Europol and develop closer regional and international cooperation
to tackle transnational criminal networks, money laundering and
terrorist financing. It highlights the importance of combating
corruption and promoting a "culture of integrity" in
such areas as border management, customs, law enforcement and
the judiciary.
Tackling illicit drugs
5.16 The Communication notes that the Eastern partners
are important countries of transit for drugs and calls for closer
cooperation to enhance the capacity of local law enforcement bodies
to disrupt the trafficking of drugs. It also highlights major
gaps in the policies and tools available to prevent drug use,
reduce the risk of harm, and provide treatment.
Justice and fundamental rights
5.17 The Communication describes the rule of law
as "a fundamental principle and overarching objective"
of EU cooperation with Eastern partners but adds that the EU will
monitor even more closely progress made in reforming judicial
systems, in light of continuing "major shortcomings",
in order to ensure impartiality, effectiveness, accountability,
and access to justice.[18]
The Commission says that the EU regards improved performance on
human rights, including implementation of international and regional
human rights instruments, as a key condition for deepening its
relations with Eastern partners. The Commission also calls for
the ratification and implementation of international conventions
on cooperation in civil and criminal matters (for example, on
extradition and on mutual legal assistance) and for the introduction
of comprehensive domestic legislation on data protection, accompanied
by the creation of independent data protection supervisory authorities.
CONCLUDING COMMENTS
5.18 The Commission concludes:
"Continuous, trust-based cooperation within
the Eastern Partnership, both at the strategic and operational
levels, is essential for increasing mobility and promoting people-to-people
contacts, while addressing the challenges and threats that do
not respect borders — such as terrorism, organised crime,
corruption and trafficking in human beings — and helping
the EU's neighbours to anchor the essential values and principles
of human rights, democracy and the rule of law."[19]
5.19 The Commission believes that the measures it
has proposed will enable the EU and its Eastern partners to enhance
their political and operational cooperation and to achieve the
ultimate goal of establishing a Common JHA Space.
The Government's view
5.20 The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Crime
and Security (James Brokenshire) says that Eastern Partnership
countries are important partners for the UK and that the Government
supports "appropriate measures intended to improve and promote
further JHA cooperation and reform in the region."[20]
He notes the importance attached to mobility as "a core objective"
of the Eastern Partnership, but adds that visa facilitation or
liberalisation agreements will not apply to the UK as it does
not participate in those elements of Schengen which concern visa
policy.
5.21 The Minister welcomes the emphasis on streamlining
existing frameworks for dialogue and cooperation rather than creating
new ones, and endorses the four guiding principles proposed by
the Commission for enhancing justice and home affairs cooperation
with Eastern Partnership countries. He says that the Government
recognises the importance of improving coordination between the
EU and Member States to avoid duplication of effort and to ensure
that resources are appropriately targeted. He believes that existing
levels of EU financial assistance for Eastern partners are sufficient.
5.22 The Minister notes that the Communication highlights
a number of thematic priorities for future EU cooperation with
Eastern partners and adds that any EU measures to implement them
"will be in line with the division of competences as established
by the Lisbon Treaty and will be subject to appropriate scrutiny
measures."[21]
Conclusion
5.23 We agree that enhanced political and operational
cooperation in the justice and home affairs field can play an
important role in promoting the rule of law, strengthening respect
for fundamental rights, and preventing and combating serious and
organised crime. We think that the Communication is right to highlight
differentiation and conditionality as important principles for
determining the pace at which enhanced JHA cooperation should
be developed with each Eastern partner country.
5.24 However, the Minister's Explanatory Memorandum
is disappointingly taciturn on some of the key elements of the
Communication. For example, he does not tell us whether the Government
agrees that mobility should be a core objective of EU policy towards
its Eastern neighbours, in light of worrying evidence on the incidence
of human trafficking and other forms of serious cross-border criminality,
as well as "major shortcomings" on fundamental issues
such as judicial reform. Nor does the Minister explain what the
creation of a Common JHA Space would mean in practice and how
easily this aspiration can be reconciled with the principles of
differentiation and conditionality which are intended to underpin
political and operational cooperation with each Eastern partner
country. We would welcome a more detailed exposition of the Government's
views on these issues.
5.25 We note that the Stockholm Programme called
for the establishment of a Human Rights Action Plan to ensure
that the EU's values — respect for human dignity, freedom,
democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights
— are adequately reflected and promoted in the EU's external
relations in the JHA field.[22]
The recent conviction of the former Ukrainian Prime Minister,
Yulia Tymoshenko, following a trial which the EU's High Representative
has described as "politically motivated"[23]
highlights the fragility of the rule of law and respect for universal
values in one of the EU's key Eastern partners. It would seem
to underline the need for a comprehensive Human Rights Plan as
an essential precursor to any more detailed policy document setting
out concrete proposals for enhanced justice and home affairs cooperation
with third countries. We ask the Minister to tell us whether a
Human Rights Action Plan has been developed and, if so, to provide
us with a copy. We also ask him whether the Government is willing
to endorse deeper political and operational cooperation with Ukraine,
in light of recent events, and with other Eastern partners which
fall short of international human rights standards.
5.26 Pending the Minister's reply, the Communication
remains under scrutiny.
12 See the Joint Declaration issued at the Prague Eastern
Partnership Summit on 7 May 2009: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/er/107589.pdf.
Back
13
Ibid, at para 7. Back
14
Council Conclusions on the European Neighbourhood Policy, 20 June
2011: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/pressdata/EN/foraff/122917.pdf.
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15
See the Stockholm Programme, para 7.2: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2010:115:0001:0038:EN:PDF.
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16
See p. 3 of the Communication. Back
17
See p. 11, para 3.3 of the Communication. Back
18
See p. 15, para 3.5.1 of the Communication. Back
19
See p. 17, para 4 of the Communication. Back
20
See para 14 of the Minister's Explanatory Memorandum. Back
21
See para 21 of the Minister's Explanatory Memorandum.
Back
22
See para 7.2 of the Stockholm Programme, OJ No. C 115, 04.05.2010,
pp. 1-38. Back
23
See Declaration by the High Representative Baroness Ashton on
behalf of the EU, 11 October 2011: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_Data/docs/pressdata/en/cfsp/125033.pdf.
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