Committee: Council of the European Union

Committee: Council of the European Union

Topic: Border Control in the Age of Terrorism

Country: Croatia

Diplomats Name: Eden Melara

With the recent increase of migration, it is incumbent on all Schengen Area member states to ensure the safe movement and integration of all peoples, while at the same time minimizing the potential deprivation of resources and social frustrations which can often lead to extremism and subsequent acts of terror. A potential solution to this problem exists in the proper management of Schengen Area borders. As stated by Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, “Terrorist attacks on European soil and other threats show that Europe is vulnerable and that security needs to be dealt with both within Europe’s borders and beyond.” Croatia has been combating the threat of unregulated borders since 2002, a milestone year which marked the beginning of modern Croatian national security. Participating in MAP (Management Action Plan) was the first step in the preparation process for attaining NATO membership. Croatia has enjoyed NATO member status since 2009. As new members of the EU, Croatia enthusiastically holds to the EUs larger agenda in national decision making. Since Croatia has joined the EU, we have been severely affected by the migration crisis enveloping Europe. In the future, the government of Croatia hopes to work with organizations such as COFACE Families Europe, QCEA, Red Cross EU, and ECRE to ensure safe movement and healthy integration of migrant across EU borders.

Croatia believes that the protection of the European Union’s external borders is a most important task. On the topic of internal security, our Prime Minister explained “the full implementation of systematic checks on borders between Member States with only one of them part of the Schengen Area – such as the case of the border between Croatia and Slovenia– showed that this may pose problems for the freedom of movement of people within the European Union. However, by open and honest cooperation, these problems were solved successfully.” We are already contributing to the protection of the EU’s external borders, and our next priority is becoming part of the Schengen Area. We fully encourage others to do so as well. Croatia hopes to be part of the Schengen Area by 2019, and we count on the European Parliament’s political support. This is important for the security of the entire European Union, and it should not be linked or conditioned upon other unrelated processes or issues.

Croatia believes that, in dealing with migrants, our success depends on reforming the Common European Asylum System. In this spirit, Croatia – a country in which one in six citizens was a displaced person or refugee as recently as 1993– is meeting its obligations in relocation and resettlement. On the topic of border control, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković has advocated the strengthening of European defence capabilities, along with Croatia’s participation in the EU’s Permanent Structured Cooperation for defence, as outlined in the Treaty of the EU, Articles 42 (6) and 46, as well as Protocol 10. In summary, Croatia stands for strong external security with supportive security inside the Schengen Area.

Works Consulted

European Programme for Integration and Migration. Home Page. (5 Mar 2018). Available at

European Union External Action, “Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) - Factsheet.” (Brussels, 5 Mar 2018). Retrieved from

Peresin, Anita. “Croatia Counter-Terrorism Strategy: Challenges, Prevention and Response System.” Research Institute for European and American Studies 160 (Feb-Mar 2013). Retrieved from

Plenković, Andrej. “SPEECH OF Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia Andrej Plenković in the European Parliament” (Strasbourg, 6 Feb 2018). Retrieved from https://vlada.gov.hr/UserDocsImages//Vijesti/2018/02%20velja%C4%8Da/6%20velja%C4%8De//Speech%20Plenkovic%20Strasbourg%206%202%202018.pdf