Finland and Baltic countries ask EU to use biometrics for border security

Finland and the Baltic countries are urging the European Union (EU) to beef up border security using high-tech biometrics technology. Biometric border control will help governments fight illegal immigration and human trafficking within the Schengen Area.

The interior ministers of Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania sent a joint appeal to European Union’s interior affairs commissioner Cecilia Malmström. Finnish Interior Minister, Päivi Räsänen, initiated the appeal. The appeal calls for the inclusion of biometric control in its border crossing information system and registered passengers’ program, which the EU is contemplating to launch this autumn.

The appeal will be presented on Monday during an informal meeting of EU justice and interior ministers in Cyprus.

The statement argues that before the EU adopts granting visa-free access to citizens of Russia and other countries to the east of EU, biometric authentication should be adopted as border control. Finland’s 1,340 km frontier with Russia is EU’s longest external border.

In your opinion, how urgent is it for EU to adopt biometrics as part of border control and security?

Article Topics

authentication  |  biometrics  |  border control  |  immigration control