On Wednesday, the European Commission approved a plan to create rapid reaction teams of border guards to deal with the European Union’s illegal immigration crisis.

The bbc reported that the “teams would be assembled by the EU border security agency, Frontex, from lists of experts in member states” (July 19).

The purpose of these teams would be to respond to requests for help from EU member states. One such example was Spain’s appeal for assistance in May for help in handling the African migrant problem in the Canary Islands. The EU has responded:

The EU’s justice commissioner, Franco Frattini, said four ships and two aircraft from EU member states had already arrived in the Canary Islands and he was confident the operation would begin next week.He said the EU was also planning an operation to patrol the Mediterranean, near the coast of Malta.Both countries say they have been overwhelmed by an influx of migrants.

The Mediterranean is certainly an area the EU is interested in, and not only for purposes of immigration control. Malta and Cyprus are strategic Mediterranean gateways to both the Middle East and Africa.

The rapid border intervention teams are to provide “expertise and manpower” for countries in difficulty. They will consist of border guards and experts and will carry out border patrols. Frontex itself will draw up the operational plans, accompany the teams on the ground, and conduct regular training.

The Commission says that planning such an operation is currently complicated by a muddle of different national laws in each member state governing what tasks foreign border guards can fulfill.

At the same time, the European Commission is tightening up on other aspects of immigration. On July 19 it also approved a list of policies aimed at tackling illegal immigration, including a new system for registering incoming and outgoing visitors of the EU in order to more easily identify those who have overstayed their visa. Mr. Frattini said he’s also considering the introduction of a law that would “harmonize” sentences throughout the EU for those who employ illegal immigrants.

The burning issue of illegal (namely Muslim) immigration is compelling nations across Europe to work together under the umbrella of the EU. As the Trumpetrecently pointed out, if we sift through the pessimistic news stories hyping European divisions, we can see much evidence that European integration is progressing at a steady pace, only awaiting a major crisis to speed it to prophetic fulfillment. For more on this, please see our editor in chief’s April 2006 article “How Europe Will Unite!”