Norway 2017
Activities of the BSRBCC Norwegian Presidency 2017
1st Secretariat Meeting
The 1st Secretariat Meeting of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation in 2017 took place 24–26 January in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by nine participants from four Member States: The Russian Federation, Latvia, Sweden and Norway. The meeting was the first of 16 events during the Norwegian Presidency 2017. Several topics were discussed to prepare for the upcoming events.
The main topics were:
Implemented activities during the Latvian Presidency 2016 – sharing of experiences
- Involvement of third countries during 2017
- Visibility of BSRBCC
- Joint Operations 2017
- Preparation of agenda for 1st BBC Meeting
1st BBC Meeting
The 1st Baltic Committee Meeting of the BSRBCC in 2017 took place 08-10 March in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 18 participants from all 10 Member States, Frontex, the Baltic Sea Task Force Secretariat and the Council of the Baltic Sea States. The meeting was the second of 16 events during the Norwegian Presidency 2017.
The main topics of the meeting were:
- Results of the 1st Secretariat Meeting
- Presentation of Frontex Joint Operations – results 2016 and plans 2017
- Presentation of Schengen – its` history and development
- Presentation of the results of a questionnaire on the visibility of BSRBCC
- Presentation of the results of a questionnaire on the BSRBCC Joint Operations
1st ATA Seminar
The 1st Annual Threat Assessment Seminar (ATA I) of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place on 4–6 April 2017 in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 19 participants from all 10 Member States, Frontex and the Baltic Sea Task Force.
The main topics covered during the meeting were:
- The current situation (threats and trends) on irregular migration in 2017 (focusing on the Baltic Sea Region) including presentations from Frontex and Member States
- The approach, structure and questionnaires for the Annual Threat Assessment 2017 were presented and discussed. Deadline for inputs to the ATA was set for 15 June 2017
Documents Examination Workshop
The Documents Examination Workshop of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place on 25–27 April 2017 in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 26 participants from nine countries and Frontex.
The main topics covered during the workshop were the following:
- Fraudulently obtained/issued documents including trends, cases, security and the need for close cooperation among national entities and the improvement of training for handlers of such documents
- Latest trends and statistical data on detected false documents and security elements in high quality forgeries
- Imitation of security features – methods and techniques
- How to use available systems/databases to detect false IDs
- Sharing information on breeder documents
Vessels Seminar
The Vessels and Pleasure Boats Seminar of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place on 22–24 May 2017 in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 20 participants from ten countries and Frontex.
The main topics covered during the meeting were:
- Trannsational organised fisheries crime
- Challenges in identifying flag states and beneficial owners of fishing vessels
- Profiling of objects at sea
- Smuggling of stolen goods to the Baltic Sea Region – update and latest trends
SAR Seminar
The SAR Seminar and SAR NOR 2017 of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place from 31 May to 2 June 2017 in Stavern, Norway. The meeting was attended by 23 participants from eight countries and Frontex.
SAR NOR 2017 was performed as a Table Top Exercise lead by the Norwegian Coast Guard focusing on relevant scenarios for Search and Rescue operations in the maritime domain.
Other topics covered during the meeting were:
- Member states' organisational structure in SAR
- Boarding procedures in Frontex-coordinated operations – the Handbook
- Shared experiences from Frontex operations
- The use of drones in SAR
2nd ATA Seminar
The 2nd Annual Threat Assessment Seminar in the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place 5-6 September 2017 in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 17 participants from nine countries and Frontex.
The aim of the seminar was to continue the work with producing the BSRBCC 2017 Annual Threat Assessment. Milestones and structure for this work was also discussed. The main objective with the report is to give guidelines to Member States on how to combat cross-border crime and irregular border crossing in the region.
Technical Surveillance Seminar
The Technical Surveillance on Maritime Borders Seminar of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place 5-7 September 2017 in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 19 participants from six countries and Frontex.
Among others, the participants received presentations from:
- Kongsberg Satellite Services – on their products and services based on satellite technology
- Northern Research Institute - on possibilities and limitations in the use of drones, especially in harsh climate conditions
- Frontex – on Eurosur Fusion Services
Aviation Seminar
The Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) Seminar for Aviation Experts was held from the 28th to 31st of August 2017 in Gdansk, Poland. The seminar was organized by the Polish Border Guard in close cooperation with FRONTEX and the Norwegian Police represented by the National Criminal Investigation Service, as the current Presidency of BSRBCC.
19 officers from nine Member States and FRONTEX participated in the seminar which was devoted to the review of aviation organizations, actual situation, especially for the last year's changes and the projects adopted for implementation in the near future.
Stolen Vehicles Seminar
The Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) Seminar on Detection of Stolen Vehicles was held from the 11th to 15th of September in Droblin, Poland.
The seminar was organized by the Polish Border Guard in close cooperation with German Federal Police, Norwegian Police and Frontex.
25 officers from nine BSRBCC Member States and Frontex participated in the seminar devoted to the counteracting of cross-border criminality, in particular the detection of stolen vehicles at border crossing points in the Baltic Sea region.
2nd Secretariat Meeting
The 2nd Secretariat Meeting of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place 21-22 September 2017 in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 12 participants from four Member States: The Russian Federation, Latvia, Sweden and Norway.
The main aim of the meeting was to prepare Sweden for their upcoming Presidency in 2018 through sharing of experiences from Latvia and Norway. Draft agendas for the 2nd BBC-meeting in October and the Heads Conference in November were also discussed.
2nd BBC Meeting
The 2nd Secretariat Meeting of the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) took place 11-13 October 2017 in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 22 participants from ten member states, the Council of the Baltic Sea States and Frontex.
The participants received updates on performed activities in BSRBCC, BSTF, CBSS and Frontex throughout the year. Frontex presented the new Joint Master programme in Strategic Border Management and Sweden informed about the initial BSRBCC Action Plan for 2018. The draft agenda for the Heads Conference in November was also discussed.
Heads Conference
The Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC) 2017 Heads' Conference took place 27-29 November in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was attended by 29 participants from ten member states, the BSTF Secretariat and Frontex.
The participants received information on all activities in BSRBCC under the Norwegian Presidency in 2017 and planned activities under the Swedish Presidency in 2018. Furthermore, the Annual Threat Assessment 2017 for the region was presented. Frontex presented an update on current and planned joint operations, and Finland a state of play on the CoastNet system. The conference ended with the formal handover of the Presidency from Norway to Sweden.
