Readout of U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland’s Meeting with EU Commissioner for Justice and Consumer Affairs Didier Reynders
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland hosted the European Union’s Commissioner for Justice and Consumer Affairs Didier Reynders in Washington, D.C. yesterday ahead of the U.S.-EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial, which will take place later this month. The two leaders discussed joint efforts underway to find, restrain, freeze, seize, and, where appropriate, confiscate or forfeit the assets of individuals and entities in connection with Russia’s unjust and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine. They also discussed how to best support ongoing war crimes investigations related to Russian aggression toward Ukraine. Attorney General Garland and Commissioner Reynders reaffirmed shared priorities in countering terrorism, violent extremism, and hate crimes and discussed opportunities to strengthen U.S.-EU cooperation in fighting environmental crime and protecting consumers.
justice.govJoint U.S.-EU statement following the U.S.-EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland hosted the U.S.-EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial at the Department of Justice on Dec. 16, 2021. Joined by Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, the Attorney General welcomed Commissioner for Justice and Consumer Affairs Didier Reynders, Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, and Slovenian Ministers for Justice Marjan Dikaučič and for Home Affairs Aleš Hojs representing the Presidency of the EU Council. Other senior EU officials who participated in person or remotely, included the Director of Europol, President of Eurojust and EU Counterterrorism Coordinator. A joint statement was issued following the meeting, which can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1457246/downloadAttorney General Garland and Secretary of Homeland Security Mayorkas are joined by EU Commissioners, Presidency of the EU Council and others at U.S.-EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial.
justice.govJoint EU-U.S. Statement Following the EU-U.S. Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial Meeting
On 22 June 2021, the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the European Union hosted the EU-U.S. The European Union, hosting the meeting, was represented by the Vice-President of the European Commission Margaritis Schinas, the Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders, the Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, as well as the Portuguese Ministers for Justice Francisca Van Dunem and for Home Affairs Eduardo Cabrita, on behalf of the current Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The United States and the European Union will continue their joint efforts and work together to address and combat existing and emerging threats that affect our societies. The United States and the European Union will pursue and expand their information exchanges on violent extremist groups, in particular, those with transnational linkages. The United States and the European Union acknowledged the need to cooperate and shape a digital future based on our shared democratic values.
justice.govEU takes Poland to court over judicial independence concerns
FILE - In this file photo taken on Monday, Oct. 5, 2015 a woman walks by the entrance to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. The European Union is referring Poland to Europes top court over long-standing concerns about respect for the rule of law and the independence of the countrys Supreme Court judges. (Geert Vanden Wijngaert, File)BRUSSELS – The European Union is referring Poland to Europe's top court over long-standing concerns about respect for the rule of law and the independence of the country's Supreme Court judges, EU officials said Wednesday. “It's a crucial step in the infraction procedure," EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders said of the court referral. Tuleya, who was critical of the changes to the justice system, has become the symbol of the struggle for judicial independence in Poland.
Vaccine passports could prove to be a privacy minefield for regulators
Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, the concept of a "vaccine passport" has been floated regularly. Now as vaccine rollouts gather pace, the prospect of these digital passports or certificates have caught the eye of many different industries. The International Air Transport Association introduced its "travel pass" late last year and launched a trial with Singapore Airlines this month. Given the sensitive health-related data at play, launching any digital service raises questions around privacy and data protection. This includes vaccine or test data and a unique identifier for the certificate.
cnbc.comEU tightens vaccine export rules, creates post-Brexit outcry
Under the post-Brexit deal, EU products should still be able to travel unhindered from the bloc to Northern Ireland. The “vaccine export transparency mechanism″ will be used at least until the end of March to control shipments to non-EU countries. The “advanced purchasing agreement” with the EU was signed in August, before the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine had been properly tested. The European Medicines Agency approved the vaccine on Friday, making it the third authorized for use by EU nations. The U.K. is thought to be paying far more for the vaccine than EU countries.
EU proposes more travel restrictions to stop virus variants
(AP Photo/Bob Edme, File)BRUSSELS – The European Union's executive body proposed Monday that the bloc's 27 nations impose more travel restrictions to counter the worrying spread of new coronavirus variants but make sure to keep goods and workers moving across EU borders. More than 400,000 EU citizens have already died from the virus since the pandemic first hit Europe last year. “The start of the EU vaccination campaign kicked off the beginning of the end of the pandemic," EU Justice commissioner Didier Reynders said. “At the same time, new, more transmissible variants of the virus have surfaced. Since the discovery of the new virus variants, several EU countries have already reinforced their lockdown measures.
France relaxes its ban on trucks entering from Britain
Quick tests will be accepted if they are able to detect the new virus variant, Djebbari said. The problem, he explained, is that the empty trucks sitting in England can’t reach the continent to pick up deliveries for Britain. The virus is blamed for 1.7 million deaths worldwide, including more than 68,000 in Britain, the second-highest death toll in Europe, behind Italy’s 69,000. Switzerland was one of the 40-odd countries to ban flights from Britain over the new variant. ___Angela Charlton in Paris, Jo Kearney in Dover, England, Lorne Cook in Brussels and Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed to this report.
Joint U.S-EU Statement Following the U.S.-EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial Meeting
On December 11, the U.S.-EU Ministerial Meeting on Justice and Home Affairs took place in Washington D.C. The United States of America was represented by Attorney General William P. Barr and Acting Secretary for Homeland Security Chad Wolf. The Ministerial which is held twice a year -- aims to oversee transatlantic cooperation in the area of Justice and Home affairs and address common security threats. We welcomed achievements in this domain, in particular the U.S. efforts to share information on foreign terrorist fighters with EU Member States and Europol. The U.S.-EU agreement on Passenger Name Records (PNR) remains an important instrument for enhancing the security of our citizens.
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