The session dedicated to Home Affairs, chaired by the Ministry of Home Affairs, as representative of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, saw a positive and fruitful exchange on the experiences and latest developments in the area of migration management, asylum, reception conditions for migrants, returns - a chapter in which the partners requested, in particular the strengthening of EU support - and updating the exchange of information in the framework of national biometric systems for registration of asylum seekers and irregular migration, with a view to integrating data on these migratory flows at regional level, through greater interoperability, already being worked on with a perspective of being extendable and compatible with the EU in the coming future. The Agreements and Joint Operations with European Agencies were also highlighted in the context of building on the already existing good cooperation and ongoing projects aimed at better functioning asylum systems in the Western Balkans, strengthening migration management capacity in the region, as well as jointly combating migrant smuggling.
Work continued on the important topic of prevention and investigation of online and offline child exploitation, with a presentation by the European Commission on the most recent policy objectives, documents and measures adopted within the Union in this field. The Western Balkan partners shared their national strategies for preventing and investigating this crime, the fight against which was unanimously considered a common challenge, and the will for closer cooperation was reiterated, notably through the cybercrime experts' network to be developed in the context of the new EMPACT policy cycle.