The Diplomat
The Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, met yesterday in Lisbon with his Portuguese counterpart, José Luís Carneiro, with whom he agreed on the need to improve European civil protection systems, especially in the fight against forest fires.
As reported by the Ministry in a press release, Grande-Marlaska assured Carneiro that the strengthening of Community civil protection mechanisms will be one of the priorities of the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU in the field of the Interior.
The two ministers exchanged views on the fight against forest fires, a concern shared by the two countries, and therefore agreed on the need to improve European civil protection systems through a model that “anticipates the threats arising from climate change and facilitates the adoption of effective preventive measures,” according to Grande-Marlaska.
“The episodes of high temperatures, very early and prolonged in time, pose an increasing risk, which requires us to make full use of European capabilities and address the issue bilaterally,” continued the minister, who advanced, in this regard, that the Spain-Portugal Joint Commission, which will meet on June 1 and 2, will address preventive measures to combat forest fires.
The meeting also allowed to discuss with Portugal the steps to close an agreement on the European Pact on Migration and Asylum. Grande-Marlaska and Carneiro also agreed to work together on other matters of common interest, such as the prevention of terrorism and violent radicalization or the fight against organized crime and serious crime, in particular against drug trafficking and cybercrime.
According to Carneiro, quoted by the Portuguese Ministry of Interior in a press release, the priorities of the Spanish Presidency “are fully aligned with the political priorities of the Portuguese Government” and involve “preventing and combating crime, including drug trafficking and drug trafficking networks from Latin America.” the prevention and fight against cybercrime, radicalization, recruitment and terrorist action; sexual exploitation on the Internet, with special attention to minors; the strengthening of information exchange and police cooperation between the EU and the countries of the Middle East and North Africa; and the management and control of EU borders.
Another priority shared by the two countries, according to Carneiro, is the strengthening of the European Civil Protection Mechanism, to anticipate the response to catastrophic situations “on the basis of a principle of true European solidarity”. In this regard, the Portuguese Government recalled that the European Commission, “also as a result of the diligence carried out jointly by the Ministers of the Interior of Portugal and Spain”, has announced an increase in the means available for the summer of this year and from which both countries hope to benefit.
Yesterday’s meeting in Lisbon is part of the round of contacts initiated by Grande-Marlaska on February 3 with EU partners to prepare the Spanish Presidency of the next semester. In the last three months, the Minister of the Interior has visited Rome, Brussels, Berlin, Warsaw, Sofia, Bucharest, Vienna and Budapest, as well as meeting with his MED5 counterparts in Valletta. During this period, the Minister has also visited the European agencies Frontex, Cepol and Europol and has held several meetings with the Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson – the last one on May 5 in Madrid – and with the President of the LIBE Committee of the European Parliament, Juan Fernando López Aguilar.
