Project for integrated management of Serbian border - project worth 1.6m EUR

Serbia, Austria and Hungary have started realization of the joint project for integrated management of Serbian border, of which aim is more liberal flow of people and goods across the border, along with the prevention of crime. The value of the project is 1.6m EUR and it is financed by 1.6m EUR, and the project users are the ministries of internal affairs, finance, and agriculture and forestry.

- Integrated border management means greater cooperation between border police, customs, veterinarian inspection and phytosanitary service. However, that cooperation is not enough, but it is also necessary to improve legal framework in order to avoid overlapping that exists in Serbia - said Vincent Degart, the Head of the European Commission's Delegation to Serbia.

Mr. Degert pointed out at the "Implementation of Integrated Border Management Strategy in Serbia" conference in Palace "Srbija" that that issue was one of the most important because of the recent history of the region and Serbia's wish to have the visa requirements for travels to the "Schengen zone" countries abolished.

- The project will face three challenges within 18 months: determination of what border services lack, adaptation of legal regulations, and education of officers. I hope that Serbia will come closer to the state that can be seen today on European borders - said Degert and added that Austrian and Hungarian officials would cooperate with their counterparts in Serbia, share their experiences with them and train them.

Mr. Degert reminded that EU had set aside total of 27m EUR for border services in Serbia, and that the allotment of another 14m EUR and aid for reconstruction of border crossings Horgoš, Batrovci and Preševo was in the pipeline.

The Minister of Internal Affairs, Ivica Dačić, said that the integrated border management was one of the capital reform projects of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and that it represented a huge step towards integration of Serbia into European structures.

- Application of the integrated border management will create preconditions for cooperation between the border services of the regional countries, which will contribute to more efficient fight against crime - said Dačić.

The Chief of the Border Police Administration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Serbia, Nenad Banović, said that that project did not anticipate technical equipping of border crossings.