This cooperation is vital, in that the risks, threats, and vulnerabilities along our shared border are identified, analyzed, and assessed on an international basis rather than a national or localized basis.

Assistance should be managed in accordance with the rules for External Aid contained in Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (4), making use of the structures that have proved their worth in the pre-accession process, such as decentralised management, twinning and TAIEX (Technical Assistance Information Exchange Instrument), but should also allow for innovative approaches such as the implementation through Member States via shared management in case of cross-border programmes on the external borders of the European Union.

This will enable the Member States to select the actions in accordance with a thorough assessment of needs and a strategy adapted to the local situation, this strategy being agreed in cooperation with the Commission.As shared management cannot be applied to third countries, there will be a delegation of tasks in decentralised management to the countries associated with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis which participate in the External Borders Fund.

In view of the general objectives of the Fund of contributing to the implementation of effective control and surveillance of our external borders through the implementation of financial solidarity between the Community and the Member States, the Commission proposes to implement the Fund mainly through shared management with the Member States and through decentralised management with countries associated with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis (see point 6).

§ A possible new structure related to border management, in particular to provide for shared training, exchanges and coordination of border controls between the services concerned in Member States, perhaps with a view to the establishment, in the longer term, of a common border control institution.

These kinds of events happened despite what senior government may have been thinking at the time, but we have been encouraged very much by three important pieces of legislation over the last decade: the open skies agreement, the shared border accord, and of course NAFTA.