Breaking news- EU border agency Frontex is on 'high alert', and are finally deploying support to Greece.
Origins of Frontex
Frontex was founded in 2005, shortly after the EU jumped from 15 to 25 members with the accession of the formerly eastern bloc countries the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia as well as Malta and Cyprus.
Its original mandate was to implement the EU's external border controls and help out member states with joint operations when a task was too big for any one nation. It deploys border guards and sea patrols where necessary, carries out risk management assessment, coordinates repatriation of illegal immigrants and monitors Europe's external borders for illegal activity.
Frontex who has a rapid reaction pool consists of at least 1500 border guards and other relevant staff from Member States placed at the disposal of the agency, which will be able to deploy them at short notice in Rapid Border Interventions and within the framework of the migration management support teams.
Frontex states it is important for our migration policy, the future of Schengen and our internal security. If we do not protect our EU external borders, Member States cannot trust Schengen.
