L 199/30 Official Journal of the European Union 31.7.2007 REGULATION (EC) No 863/2007 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 11 July 2007 establishing a mechanism for the creation of Rapid Border Intervention Teams and amending Council Regulation (EC) No 20072004 as regards that mechanism and regulating the tasks and powers of guest officers THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EURO- PEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu- nity, and in particular Articles 62(2)(a) and 66 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, After consulting the European Economic and Social Committee, Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (1), Whereas: 1 On 26 October 2004, the Council adopted Regulation (EC) No 2007/2004 establishing a European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the Exter- nal Borders of the Member States of the European Union (?) (the Agency). A Member State facing circumstances requiring increased technical and operational assistance at its external bor- ders may, without prejudice to Article 64(2) of the Treaty and in accordance with Articles 7 and 8 of Regulation (EC) No 2007/2004, ask the Agency for assistance in the form of coordination, where other Member States are involved. Effective management of the external borders through checks and surveillance helps to combat illegal immigra- tion and trafficking in human beings and to prevent any threat to the internal security, public policy, public health and international relations of the Member States. Border control is in the interests not only of the Member State at whose external borders it is carried out but of all Member States which have abolished internal border control. Responsibility for the control of the external borders lies with the Member States. Bearing in mind the critical situ- ations which Member States from time to time have to deal with at their external borders, in particular the arrival at points of the external borders of large numbers of third- country nationals trying to enter the territory of the Mem- ber States illegally, it may be necessary to assist Member States by providing appropriate and sufficient resources, in particular personnel. (1) Opinion of the European Parliament of 26 April 2007 (not yet pub- lished in the Official Journal) and Council Decision of 12 June 2007. () OJ L 349, 25.11.2004, p. 1. ©) The current possibilities for providing efficient practical assistance with regard to checking persons at the external borders and the surveillance of the external borders at European level are not considered sufficient, in particular where Member States are faced with the arrival of large numbers of third-country nationals trying to enter the ter- ritory of the Member States illegally. A Member State should accordingly have the possibility of requesting the deployment, within the framework of the Agency, of Rapid Border Intervention Teams compris- ing specially trained experts from other Member States on its territory to assist its national border guards on a tem- porary basis. The deployment of the Rapid Border Inter- vention Teams will contribute to increasing solidarity and mutual assistance between Member States. The deployment of Rapid Border Intervention Teams to provide support for a limited period of time should take place in exceptional and urgent situations. Situations of this kind would arise where a Member State was faced with a mass influx of third-country nationals attempting to enter its territory illegally which required an immediate response and where the deployment of a Rapid Border Intervention Team would contribute to providing an effec- tive response. Rapid Border Intervention Teams are not intended to provide long-term assistance. Rapid Border Intervention Teams will depend on the planned duties, availability and frequency of deployment. To ensure the effective operation of the Rapid Border Intervention Teams, Member States should make available an appropriate number of border guards (the Rapid Pool) reflecting in particular the specialisation and size of their own border guard organisations. The Member States should therefore create national pools of experts to help increase the effectiveness of this Regulation. The different sizes of the Member States and the technical specialisa- tion of their border guard organisations should be taken into consideration by the Agency. Best practices from many Member States show that know- ing the profiles (skills and qualifications) of available bor- der guards before deployment significantly contributes to the efficient planning and conduct of operations. The Agency should therefore determine the profiles and over- all number of border guards to be provided for the Rapid Border Intervention Teams.