| Author (Corporate) | European Commission |
|---|---|
| Series Title | COM |
| Series Details | (2013) 862 final (10.12.13) |
| Publication Date | 10/12/2013 |
| Content Type | Policy-making |
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Regulation (EU) No 439/2010 established the European Asylum Support Office to strengthen practical cooperation between Member States on asylum, enhance the implementation of the Common European Asylum System and support Member States whose asylum and reception systems are under particular pressure. Recital 24 of the Regulation foresees that "to fulfil its purpose, the Support Office should be open to participation by countries which have concluded agreements with the Union by virtue of which they have adopted and apply law of the Union in the fields covered by this Regulation, in particular Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland". These countries are referred to as the "associate countries". The participation of associate countries in the Support Office's work is not only a logical step, having regard to their association to the Dublin system, but also has a clear added value to the Support Office's support offer such as: the exchange of best practices and expertise; the Support Office's permanent and emergency support; the Support Office's information gathering and analysis; and the Support Office's early warning and preparedness system. On that basis the Commission presented on 1 July 2011 a recommendation to the Council in order to authorise the Commission to open negotiations with Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein on international agreements establishing such arrangements. The Commission received the Council authorisation to open negotiations on arrangements on the modalities of these countries’ participation in EASO on 27 January 2012. The negotiations were held jointly with all associate countries. Four rounds of negotiations took place. The final text of the draft Arrangement with Switzerland was initialled on 28 June 2013. |
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| Source Link | Link to Main Source http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2013:862:FIN |
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| Subject Categories | Justice and Home Affairs |
| Countries / Regions | Europe, Switzerland |
