From: personal data

Sent: 26 April 2021 17:12

To: Krzysztof Borows RR] personal
data

Cc: personal data

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: Tragic shipwreck last week

[EXTERNAL EMAIL] CAUTION: Email originated from outside of Frontex. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
recognize and trust the sender.

Hi Chris,

Thanks a lot, really helpful - | also should have asked you, my bad. That way | could’ve said more things
at midday. Hopefully there won’t be a next time, but if there is, !’I| remember to get in touch.

we] personal data

From: Krzysztof Borowski Beer personal data

Sent: Monday, 26 April, 2021 16:39

To: personal data

Cc: personal data
Subject: Tragic shipwreck last week

Dear Be personal data

Inthe havoc over the weekend I failed to share with you a brief note we shared with the media
re: the role of Frontex in the Central Med. Deep apologies for the oversight. Below, please find
the LTT we used.

We are deeply saddened by this tragedy. Once again, criminal gangs, putting profits
above life, crammed desperate people onto an unseaworthy boat in terrible weather
conditions and pushed them out into the sea.

One of our airplanes performing surveillance in the area spotted a grey rubber boat with
dozens of people adrift offthe Libyan coast on Wednesday afternoon. The plane
immediately alerted national rescue centres in Italy, Malta and Libya, as required by
international law. Because of the critical situation and deteriorating weather, the crew
of our plane also issued several distress calls over the emergency marine radio channel
to alert all ships nearby. Several merchant vessels in the area proceeded to render
assistance. Because of the worsening weather conditions, and the fact that the plane
was running out of fuel, it had to return to base late at night.

The morning after, another search and rescue flight was organised. Unfortunately, it
only spotted a deflated rubber boat and one dead body in the water.

From: Bee personal data

Sent: 26 April 2021 09:28
To: ______ _Bosscreo
Subject: FW: Media monitoring - article on Frontex

From:
Sent: 26 April 2021 09:11

personal data

 
 
 

personal data

 
 
 

personal data
Subject: Media monitoring - article on Frontex

Good morning EEE personal data

We came across this article on the web: Link

Frontex: We Did All We Could To Save Migrants

The European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, claims to have done everything possible to save
the migrants killed in a shipwreck, which independent rescue groups said left more than 100 people

dead.

 

We would like to ask you if it should be included in today’s DNL or if you would like to consider it for
FITN.

Thank you and kind regards.

    

personal data

From: ee personal data

Sent: 23 April 2021 21:50
To: a personal data
Subject: LTT Central Med

Attachments: LTT Central Med.docx

From: | ve rsonal data

Sent: 24 April 2021 15:10

To: Press

Ce: Bee personal data

Subject: [EXTERNAL] Request of interviw - Italian TV La7, broadcast
“Piazzapulita”

Follow Up Flag: Follow up

Flag Status: Completed

[EXTERNAL EMAIL] CAUTION: Email originated from outside of Frontex. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
recognize and trust the sender.

Dear U personal data

As anticipated on the phone, please find here our request.

’rn personal data of the main prime time info broadcast of the
national Italian TV La7 “Piazzapulita”.

Rated among the most popular and appreciated news show in Italy, Piazzapulita has an
average of 2 million viewers every week. The anchorman EEE personal data

is an awarded national and foreign correspondent.

For this Thursday, April 29th episode, with my colleague EEE personal data we
are working on a focus on the recent shipwreck case in the Mediterranean Sea which has lead
to the death of around 130 people (between Wednesday and Thursday of this week).

We hereby kindly ask you to have the possibility to realize an interview with a Frontex
spokesperson within Monday, April 26th and Tuesday, April 27th.

We wouldn’t ask you more than 15 minutes of your time.

Skype would be fine (if no-one of your staff is based in Italy at the moment).

Looking forward to hearing from you soon, we thank you in advance.
Best regards,

BE personal data

BE er sonai data
Fe

en...

From: personal data

Sent: 27 April 2021 09:23

To: Krzysztof Borowski ee
personal data

Cc: personal data

Subject: [EXTERNAL] RE: LTT - shipwreck

[EXTERNAL EMAIL] CAUTION: Email originated from outside of Frontex. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
recognize and trust the sender.

Thanks a lot! Very useful.

From: Krzysztof Borowski EEE | personal data

Sent: Tuesday, 27 April, 2021 09:19
To:
Cc:
Subject: LTT - shipwreck

Dear ar personal data,

Below please find expanded LTT re: the shipwreck. We include a timeline of all the actions taken
by Frontex in extreme weather conditions.

  

personal data
personal data

Despite the extreme weather conditions, Frontex staff went above and beyond the necessary to
assist in the search and rescue operation last week. The following is a brief outline of the events
as related to the Frontex participation in the SAR.

Wednesday, 22 April

°e At 17:15 Frontex plane OSPREY 1 took off from Lampedusa to comply with a request from
the Italian national rescue centre (MRCC) regarding three possible boats in distress in the Libyan
Search and Rescue zone.

°e At 18:36 OSPREY 1 spotted a grey rubber boat adrift with about 80 persons on board,
Frontex informed the Libyan, Italian and Maltese Rescue Coordination Centres.

°e At 19:14 OSPREY 1 broadcast a distress communication over the marine radio emergency
channel (MAYDAY RELAY); OSPREY 1 then contacted Air Traffic Control Tripoli to pass all the
information related to the event to Tripoli Rescue Coordination Centre.

°e At 19:35 Frontex tried to contact Tripoli Rescue Coordination Centre twice over the phone
with no success.

e _ At 20:00 Frontex updated Libyan, Italian and Maltese Rescue Coordination Centres about
the rubber boat in distress.

e At 20:23 OSPREY 1 again broadcast the distress call (MAYDAY RELAY) over the marine radio
emergency channel as well as to Tripoli Air Traffic Control.

e At 20:52 OSPREY 1 started to return to Lampedusa because it was running out of fuel.

From: Krzysztof Borowski

Sent: 28 April 2021 09:27
To: HE person! cat
Subject: FW: Frontex in the news - Shipwreck (Avvenire.it news)

Newspaper releases emails from Frontex to Alarmphone

The Italian newspaper quoted two emails sent by Frontex to Alarmphone during the SAR in the Central
Mediterranean last week.

“Frontex specifies: ‘Following the dangerous conditions of the distressed boat a radio message
“Mayday” was sent to the ships passing through the area’. A circumstance confirmed by the merchant
ships and the command bridge of the Ocean Viking, which had listened to the radio message from the
European Osprey plane: ‘Mayday Mayday for a boat in distress’”

In another email, Frontex said it had informed all MRCCSs in the area.

Chris Borowski

From: pe rsona! oat
Sent: 28 April 2021 09:20

To: Krzysztof Borowski personal data
Ce: personal data

Subject: FW: Frontex in the news - Shipwreck (Avvenire.it news)

Dear E] personal data

for your information:

The last shipwreck in the Mediterranean: here are the faces of the "disappeared'" — Avvenire
(translated)

e  Regarding the case of 130 missing migrants on April 21, the reconstruction of the facts, confirms
that time was lost during the rescuing operation. Frontex emails concerning the case provide
new details.

®e On Thursday, 22 April at 16:06, Frontex replies with an email to the Alarm Phone, clarifying that
the previous day a plane ofthe EU agency for border control had spotted the boat reported by
the volunteers of the "civil switchboard".

oe The gravity ofthe situation is known. Frontex specifies: "Following the dangerous conditions of
the distressed boat a radio message ‘Mayday’ was sent to the ships passing through the area". A
circumstance confirmed by the merchant ships and the command bridge of the Ocean Viking,
which had listened to the radio message from the European Osprey plane: "Mayday Mayday for
a boat in distress". Then the indication of the coordinates to reach the castaways.

e This time, Frontex adds a detail that alone explains how the previous warnings were deemed
insufficient: "Allthe MRCC in the area (the rescue coordination centers) have been informed,
including that of Tripoli as the responsible coordination center”, for Libyan search and rescue
operations in the sea. Eight hours earlier, Frontex despite being aware of the situation of serious

From: _______ _ Bagacree

Sent: 23 April 2021 09:55
To: | personal data
Subject: 11389/2021 - Frontex in the News

 

1 To] 1 EI, GE 23 Apr 2021 09:55

FRONTEX IN THE NEWS

 

FRONTEX

Johansson: Frontex is the most important agency in Europe

e _Frontex is investigating the accusations of alleged pushbacks, at the same time it is setting up
| Fundamental Rights monitors to monitor the situation, Commissioner Ylva Johansson informed
| during her visit to Slovenia. "Personally, | am very much in favor of Frontex receiving a lot of
| money and a new mandate to become a very large and important agency. It is the most

important agency we have in Europe,” she added.

e "We now have the Fundamental Rights officer in place. We have made great progress in
recruiting Fundamental Rights monitors, and in a matter of days we will begin recruiting Deputy
Executive Directors,” the Chairman of Frontex Management Board Marko GaSperlin explained.

e Interior Minister Ales Hojs said after the meeting with Commissioner that although Slovenia
opposed mandatory relocation of asylum applicants it was still willing to show solidarity in a
different way, "perhaps with greater presence in Frontex”.

EFE Translate Related Article

More than 100 migrants feared dead after shipwreck off Libya

e _Dozens of bodies were spotted near a capsized vessel on Thursday, which had about 130 people
on board, a NGO Alarm Phone said.
© The wreck of the rubber dingy was spotted by a Frontex plane.

| The Guardian Related Article

| EU agencies need to improve financial management: auditors

e While confirming positive results in previous years, EU agencies need to tighten up financial
management, especially in the way they conduct public procurement, EU auditors said in a report
Wednesday. They also emphasise the fact that Frontex’s checks on financing agreements with
cooperating countries are not yet fully effective.

 

eubusiness.com

Germany extends controls at Austrian border

e German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has extended controls at border to Austria for another
six months to November because of the migration situation. The situation at the German-
Austrian border remains "alarming”, Minister Seehofer wrote in a letter to the European

From: Press

Sent: 23 April 2021 22:52
To: personal data
Subject: FW: [EXTERNAL] accredit request

From: EEE personal data

Sent: 23 April 2021 22:51:35 (UTC+01:00) Sarajevo, Skopje, Warsaw, Zagreb
To: Press

Subject: RE: [EXTERNAL] accredit request

[EXTERNAL EMAIL] CAUTION: Email originated from outside of Frontex. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
recognize and trust the sender.

Thanks, have a fine weekend.

ee personal data

Inviato dal mio Galaxy

nun Messaggio originale --------

Da: Press <Press@frontex.europa.eu>
Data: 23/04/21 19:16 (GMT+01:00)
Ä: personal data
Cc: Press <Press@frontex.europa.eu>

Oggetto: RE: [EXTERNAL] accredit request

Dear Ma personal data

We are deeply saddened by this tragedy. Once again, criminal gangs, putting profits above life, crammed
desperate people onto an unseaworthy boat in terrible weather conditions and pushed them out into
the sea.

One of our airplanes performing surveillance in the area spotted a grey rubber boat with dozens of
people adrift off the Libyan coast. The plane immediately alerted national rescue centres in Italy, Malta
and Libya, as required by international law. Because oftthe critical situation and deteriorating weather,
the crew of our plane also issued several distress calls over the emergency marine radio channel to alert
all ships nearby. Several merchant vessels in the area proceeded to render assistance. Because of the
worsening weather conditions, the plane had to return to base.

Unfortunately, another Frontex plane a day later only spotted a deflated rubber boat and one dead
body in the water.

Chris Borowski
Spokesperson

From: EEE 91 son1 ct:

Sent: 26 April 2021 20:01

To: Krzysztof Borowski need
personal data

Ce: ee personal data

Subject: FW: [EXTERNAL] Libya incident - LTT

Dear Krzysztof

FYI

Please also share those lines with the COM Spokespersons’ team (I guess this is ee] personal data)
Thank you

I personal data

    

personal data

From:  Dersona! cat

Sent: 26 April 2021 20:00

    
 
   

personal data

personal data
Subject: RE: [EXTERNAL] Libya incident - LTT

Dear Br personal data

Please find below the LTTs used on this event.

Despite the extreme weather conditions, Frontex staff went above and beyond the necessary to assist in
the search and rescue operation last week. The following is a brief outline ofthe events as related to the
Frontex participation in the SAR.

Wednesday, 22 April

°e At 17:15 Frontex plane OSPREY 1 took off from Lampedusa to comply with a request from the
Italian national rescue centre (MRCC) regarding three possible boats in distress in the Libyan Search and
Rescue zone.

°e At 18:36 OSPREY 1 spotted a grey rubber boat adrift with about 80 persons on board, Frontex
informed the Libyan, Italian and Maltese Rescue Coordination Centres.

e _At19:14 OSPREY 1 broadcast a distress communication over the marine radio emergency channel
(MAYDAY RELAY); OSPREY 1 then contacted Air Traffic Control Tripoli to pass all the information related
to the event to Tripoli Rescue Coordination Centre.

e At 19:35 Frontex tried to contact Tripoli Rescue Coordination Centre twice over the phone with no
Success.

e _ At 20:00 Frontex updated Libyan, Italian and Maltese Rescue Coordination Centres about the rubber
boat in distress.

personal data
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Libya incident - LTT

[EXTERNAL EMAIL] CAUTION: Email originated from outside of Frontex. Do not click links or open attachments unless you
recognize and trust the sender.

Dear EN personal data

I hope all is good in Warsaw.

There have been diverging press records on last week’s incidence with about 130 persons dying and of
course, as usually, also the commission gets a lot of questions on this.

I understand that the more factual press reports were fed by your LTT on the events. Could you share
this line with us so that we are sure we all sing from the same song sheet? And it would be great if this
could be done in future from your side spontaneously in case of major incidents that are likely to attract
significant media attention — that would save us a lot back and forth and time (and would give a good
image of both Frontex and the COM to the outside in our view).

Grateful to hear what you think.

Best regards,
personal data

E22 > an data

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL MIGRATION AND HOME AFFAIRS
Directorate B - Borders, Interoperability and Innovation

  

 

personal data