The USA is back


 23 junho 2021
The USA is back

The United States Secretary for Homeland Security, Mr. Alejandro Mayorkas, visited Lisbon on 22 June to co-chaired, together with the Minister for Home Affairs, Mr. Eduardo Cabrita, and the Minister of Justice, Mrs. Francisca Van Dunem, the Ministerial Meeting between the European Union and the United States of America on Justice and Home Affairs.

The representatives of the Council of the European Union and the United States, accompanied by the Vice-President of the European Commission, Mr. Margaritis Schinas, as well as by the European Commissioners for Justice (Mr. Didier Reynders) and for Home Affairs (Mrs. Ylva Johansson), took advantage of this first meeting with John Biden's Administration to address issues of common interest and priority, such as the response to common threats in the area of internal security, especially those resulting from the digital age, as well as the challenges of migration and mobility. 

The meeting resulted in a Joint Statement, which embodies the words of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who stated that the United States of America is back on the international scene, committed to cooperating with the European Union and all its partners, in areas such as the exchange of information and the prevention and combating terrorism; combating extremist and hate speech; preventing the use of internet and new media for committing crimes; the use of Artificial Intelligence for the benefit of Law Enforcement; the management of migratory flows and asylum policy, with an emphasis on the fight against trafficking in human beings. Mobility issues, namely those linked to reciprocity in visa policy, were also addressed during the proceedings. 

The meeting, which was also attended by the Executive Directors of EUROPOL and EUROJUST, and at which the Slovenian Minister for the Interior gave a detailed presentation of the priorities of the incoming Presidency of the Council with regard to Home Affairs, was marked by an extremely positive spirit of shared commitment to strengthening the links of cooperation, particularly operational cooperation, between the USA and the EU, particularly with regard to online sexual abuse and trafficking in human beings.