European Commission
Malmström

This morning I met with the CEO and representatives from the Swedish mining company LKAB. The company accounts for 90% of iron ore production in Europe. We talked, among other things, about energy efficiency and research.  It was an interesting meeting, and in times of economic crisis it is especially nice to hear that there is still a huge demand for labour, as there is in Kiruna. They are dependent, and will in future be increasingly more so, on getting people with the right skills. They have partnered with universities in Iceland and Turkey among others to try and get this right. Increasing mobility with Turkey is one of my political priorities, and so while things are moving slowly with Turkey at the EU level, it is nice to see that it is moving forward elsewhere.

During the day, I followed CNN reporter Nic Robertson’s live reporting from Hama in Syria on Twitter. It’s really a terrible situation in the country and I am admiring the Syrian population for being incredibly brave and persistent.

It’s my third day on Twitter, and I admit, it is fun to see that I already have 500 followers.

The main discussion in today’s Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting was of course about the situation in Northern Africa. The discussion focused on the need for solidarity and about what measures can be taken by the EU and the member states to support the democratic forces in the region.

I’m very happy about the decision of the Council today to adopt the readmission agreement with Turkey. Turkey is an important partner and we need to intensify our cooperation. The Council also agreed to launch a visa dialogue and I’m ready to go to Turkey to identify which efforts that needs to be taken.

This morning I visited the border point between Bulgaria and Turkey at Kapitan Andreevo. The visit gave me a clear idea of the efforts put in place by the Bulgarian authorities to control the Bulgarian border, which is also an external border to the EU.