Commissioner Says Vote Against Frontex Contribution Could End Schengen Membership for Switzerland
She warned that there would be negative consequences if citizens in Switzerland did not support such a plan, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.
The European Commissioner for Home Affairs has said that the consequences would mean the end of the Schengen and Dublin accord for the Central European country.
In an interview with Tamedia media group, Johansson stressed that it is not in the EU’s interest to see Switzerland leave Europe’s Schengen Area; however, the EU and Switzerland have an agreement, and “we will insist that Switzerland is not able to choose which part of the agreement it may want to respect.” The EU Commissioner stressed that Schengen is not an “à-la-carte menu.”
Swizz citizens will decide on May 15 on whether its country’s contributions to the agency should be increased or not, after over 62,000 signatures were collected for its organization by NGOs and Swiss parties who urge the country’s authorities to stop financing Frontex after the agency has often been accused of many unlawful affairs, including illegal pushbacks of migrants.
Switzerland’s citizens protested in Geneva to oppose such a proposal ahead of the scheduled referendum. It was reported that about 80 different groups organized such demonstrations, including NGOs, while they claimed that nearly 3,000 people participated in such demonstrations.
Recently, the Green Party Member of Parliament, Tiana Moser, also said that the country risks being excluded from the Schengen Zone if it does not accept to increase its contributions to Frontex.
Despite the fact that the idea has not been supported by a large number of people in Switzerland, Moser showed that she shares a different opinion on the matter.
“The government and parliament then have the task of explaining the proposed legislation to the population. In this case, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to increased security needs across Europe, including in Switzerland. It has also increased awareness of the necessity for countries with shared values to stand together and cooperate,” Moser pointed out in this regard.
The European Union Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, has often been accused of being involved in illicit affairs. Recently, the European Union Border and Coast Guard Agency, Fabrice Leggeri, resigned after reports that Frontex turned a blind eye to illegal pushbacks of migrants who attempted to reach European countries.
