Eduardo Cabrita chaired the informal videoconference of Home Affairs Ministers, in the scope of the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Under discussion was the strengthening of the resilience of critical entities that provide essential services in the EU. The proposed new rules correspond to a broader approach and aim to ensure that critical infrastructures in EU countries are able to prevent incidents and recover from such incidents, which may be caused by natural hazards, accidents, terrorism, internal threats or public health emergencies, such as those the world is currently facing.
The Portuguese Presidency took stock of progress on the work of the Migration and Asylum Pact and promoted a debate on the external aspects of migration, on the basis of the Commission's communication and report on strengthening cooperation on return and readmission with third countries.
The Presidency also presented an initiative to enhance cooperation between the EU and North African countries, in the area of justice and home affairs, which was enthusiastically received by the Member states and EU agencies.
The press conference at the end of the meeting can be viewed here