Skopje, 28 October 2024 (MIA) - A delegation headed by Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski is attending the EU-Western Balkans Ministerial Forum on Justice and Home Affairs taking place October 28-29 in Budva, Montenegro.

According to the Interior Ministry, Toshkovski delivered a speech at the forum, where the main topics of discussion included the fight against transnational organized crime and illicit trafficking in drugs and in human beings, migration, asylum, and border management - the EU action plan for the Western Balkans.

During the forum, Minister Toshkovski held a meeting with European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, during which an Administrative Arrangement was signed to establish cooperation between the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the European Commission within the European Migration Network.

“The European Migration Network aims to fulfill the information requirements related to migration and asylum for the Union's institutions as well as for the authorities and institutions of the member countries, providing updated, objective, reliable, and comparable information on migration and asylum, in order to support policy-making in the European Union in these areas. This arrangement serves as an official document confirming our accession to the European Migration Network of the European Union. This essentially means ensuring that the Ministry of Internal Affairs has access to updated, objective, reliable, and comparable information produced within the European Migration Network about the situation of asylum and migration in EU member states, which is governed by confidentiality protocols and information-sharing practices in accordance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation,” reads the press release.

Toshkovski highlighted that representatives from the Ministry of Internal Affairs will participate in future meetings of the European Migration Network and should have authority in the fields of asylum and migration, addressing aspects of policy-making, law, research, and statistics.

In the first session, Toshkovski presented the positive results achieved this year in the fight against organised crime, such as dismantling of an organizes criminal group composed of 13 members involved in migrant smuggling and five criminal groups operating in the area of illicit drug trafficking at international, local and national levels. He emphasized that a unified, coordinated, and strategic approach is vital in addressing these threats, and that only through collaborative resources and mutual determination can we make meaningful advances in protecting our nations, our people, and delivering justice.

At the forum session dedicated to strengthening migration, asylum, and border management: the EU Action Plan on the Western Balkans, Minister Toshkovski underscored the strong cooperation with FRONTEX and the focus on EU-funded regional projects aimed at enhancing human, technical, and other capacities for more effective border management.

Photo: Interior Ministry