The 27 EU home affairs ministers meet regularly for their working sessions where they shape the course of European home affairs policy. In addition, the Federal Minister of the Interior also meets bilaterally with counterparts from the other member states.

At these bilateral meetings, the Federal Minister seeks support for German interests in the field of home affairs and coordinates the German positions with those of the other member states.

Convincing partners

Bilateral coordination is indispensable because decisions in the area of European home affairs policy are taken by majority vote. This means that the Federal Republic of Germany cannot take or prevent decisions on its own. Rather, it has to convince other EU member states.

By the same token, other EU member states have an interest in gaining Germany’s support for their ideas. Since the Federal Minister cannot hold all these talks with our European partners personally, a constant exchange on technical matters takes place at working level.