Bilateral and multilateral operational cooperation among Frontex, EASO and Europol

Abstract

Not only are the operational and overseeing tasks of Frontex, Easo and Europol reinforced, but their multilateral cooperation on the ground to assist the frontline Member States has also been expanded after the adoption of the hotspot approach. Gradually, these agencies have been assigned operational tasks on closely intertwined matters, which require their coordination and cooperation to prevent overlaps, duplications and working silos. While Frontex, Easo and Europol were already cooperating on a bilateral and multilateral basis before the hotspot approach was designed in 2015, the “refugee crisis” revealed the need to develop a more systematic and operational cooperation of these agencies on the territory of the Member States. This chapter thus examines the concept of operational cooperation, the evolution of the bilateral and multilateral operational cooperation of Frontex, Easo and Europol, as well as their reinforced multilateral operational cooperation on the ground in the hotspots.