European Union – Meetings held by Jean-Yves Le Drian and Clément Beaune with Ylva Johansson, European Commissioner for Home Affairs (Paris, 12 February 2021)

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Jean-Yves Le Drian, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, met today with Ylva Johansson, European Commissioner for Home Affairs. Clément Beaune, Minister of State for European Affairs, attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, also had an opportunity to meet with the European commissioner.

These meetings fall within the framework of the regular dialogue between France and the European Commission and are taking place in preparation for the French presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2022.

The meetings focused on the Pact on Migration and Asylum, the overhaul of the Schengen area and the fight against terrorism.

The minister and the minister of state reaffirmed the importance of engaging in constructive negotiations on the Pact on Migration and Asylum presented by the European Commission in September in order to establish a resilient and long-term European system for managing migration and asylum. They underscored the need to achieve a balance based on the principles of strengthened solidarity and accountability between EU member states as well to establish tools for tangibly improving our cooperation with countries of origin and transit.

With respect to the fight against terrorism, the discussions focused on the EU’s new Counter-Terrorism Agenda.

The minister and the minister of state advocated for an overhaul of the Schengen area in the context of the new proposals due to be put forward by the Commission in the spring and stressed the need to strengthen the Schengen area in order to preserve the rights and freedoms enjoyed by European citizens given the pressure and threats it faces.