The European Commission has published its General Report for 2025. DG HOME’s work is mainly covered in Chapter 3 – Strengthening Europe’s Defence and Security.
In the context of growing geopolitical instability, the European Union is stepping up its efforts to protect citizens and ensure Europe’s security. In 2025, the EU launched a set of new initiatives to help Member States respond to short-term urgencies, while also addressing the pressing long-term need to boost European security and defence readiness.
Enhancing internal security and border control
To address increasing security and hybrid threats such as terrorism, organised crime, cybercrime and attacks on critical infrastructure, the EU needs a new approach to its internal security and border control. EU support in these areas aims to help Member States in digitalising border control management, better equip border guards and enhance cooperation with non-EU countries. It also aims to equip law enforcement authorities with modernised capabilities to fight terrorism and organised crime, both online and offline.
In line with the Commission’s political priorities, a major part of the EU’s response to the new security landscape came in the spring of 2025, with the launch of ProtectEU, the new European Internal Security Strategy, on 1 April. This comprehensive, whole-of-society approach to online and offline security threats, which include terrorism, organised crime, cybercrime, attacks on critical infrastructure and hybrid threats, involves citizens, businesses, researchers and civil society. It will also ensure that security is integrated into EU legislation and policies.
Through ProtectEU, the Commission also set about developing a new strategy to combat trafficking, addressing every stage from prevention to prosecution.
The EU’s key focus on common borders in 2025 was to make them more secure by putting in place a fully functional digital border management system, implementing an integrated border management approach and an EU visa policy strategy, and ensuring a complete and fully functioning Schengen area.
Further work will continue in the following areas:
- strengthening political and operational governance with the effective implementation of agreed rules and the use of common information systems, resources and infrastructure;
- accelerating the implementation of the digitalisation framework to prevent security risks;
- continued investment in research and innovation;
- continuous adaptation to the evolving security landscape with a common intelligence picture, joint operational actions and stronger cooperation among law enforcement authorities;
- effective measures to return those with no legal right to stay in the EU.
The Commission will continue to track progress through the annual Schengen Scoreboard and further consolidate the Schengen Evaluation and Monitoring Mechanism. This includes systems in both Schengen countries and EU candidate countries. The Commission, with the support of the Schengen Coordinator, will continue to support Member States to ensure effective cooperation on cross-border operational law enforcement.