An informal meeting of the Council of Justice and Home Affairs Ministers of the European Union was held in Brdo, Slovenia, from 14 to 16 July, with the participation of Marija Golubeva, Minister for the Interior. The meeting discussed the potential of new technologies in the fight against crime, the new Pact on Migration and Asylum, and the new Schengen strategy.
"This was an important meeting in the context of both Latvia and the European Union. The question of how to balance civil liberties, while strengthening the capacity of law enforcement agencies to fight crime in the digital space, affects all countries. Today, most crimes also have a digital component, often not linked to a single country and affecting a wider range of countries. The issue of protection of common borders is just as important, especially for Latvia, which protects the eastern border of the European Union, ” admitted M. Golubeva.
On 21 April this year, the European Commission (EC) presented a proposal for a regulation on artificial intelligence. When discussing the challenges in the fight against crime in the digital area, the Minister stressed that the new framework should be able to ensure a balance between people's rights to privacy while not compromising the ability of law enforcement authorities to carry out their duties effectively, preventing these types of crime.
During the meeting, Slovenia announced its plans for further work on the Migration and Asylum Pact. From Latvia's point of view, prevention plays an important role - stopping and preventing flows, an effective return policy and managing the external border.
Finally, Member States discussed further steps to strengthen the Schengen area. The European Commission has proposed various measures for a fully functioning and more resilient Schengen area.
Representatives of the European Commission and the Member States agreed that the Schengen area without internal borders is one of the greatest achievements of European integration and plays a key role in the functioning of the European Union's single market.