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Immigrant crisis in Europe
The European Union has called for a mandatory bloc-wide system to manage migration, after years of division over how to respond to a large influx of migrants and refugees.
The German-backed pact would require the participation of all 27 EU countries.
Member states would agree to take in asylum seekers or undertake to return those who are denied asylum.
The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, called it a “European solution … to restore the trust of citizens.”
The recent fires that destroyed Greece’s Moria camp, which is home to more than 12,500 migrants and refugees, were “a stark reminder that we must find sustainable solutions,” he added.
But the plans have been criticized, both by human rights groups and governments opposed to taking in migrants.
Since the influx of more than a million migrants and refugees in 2015, mainly through Italy and Greece, the 27 EU states have been divided on how to respond, and the new pact has already drawn criticism.
Italy and Greece have accused the richest countries in the north of not doing enough, but several Central and Eastern European nations have openly resisted the idea of accepting a migrant quota.
What’s in the plan?
The new pact, which has been pushed harder by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, proposes a “fair sharing of responsibility and solidarity among member states while providing certainty to individual applicants.” There would be:
- New mandatory pre-entry control that includes health, identity and security controls
- A faster border asylum process involving decisions within 12 weeks and speedy returns for unsuccessful applicants
All 27 EU countries would have “flexible options” on how to participate, so countries like Hungary and Poland that have refused to accept arrivals in the past will be asked to help in different ways.
- Welcoming the newcomers
- “Sponsor” returns: ensuring, on behalf of other states, that people who were denied asylum are returned
- Provide immediate operational support
- Each state would be legally obligated to contribute its “fair share,” based on half of GDP and the other half on population size.
The president of the European Commission said that the new pact “will rebuild trust among member states” and achieve the “proper balance between solidarity and responsibility.”
EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs Ylva Johansson said she assumed that none of the member states would be satisfied with the pact, “but I think we would have 27 member states and a parliament that would say this is worth working on.”
The new pact is also designed to replace the old Dublin rule, which requires that asylum applications be processed in the EU country where the applicant first enters the system.
Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas said the old regulation was designed for a few people fleeing dictatorships, not the current reality.
There is no easy solution to a long-term crisis
Analysis by Kevin Connolly, Europe correspondent
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Of all the problems that have plagued the European Union, none is more chronic or more corrosive than migration. The search for solutions began even before the upheaval of 2015 saw the arrival of a million migrants, refugees and asylum seekers to the shores of the bloc.
And the 2016 deal under which Turkey agreed to withhold some of that tide of humanity in exchange for substantial cash payments now shows signs of strain. That leaves the EU countries where immigrants first land, especially Greece and Italy, with most of the burden.
But Poland and Hungary have resolutely resisted plans for mandatory sharing in the past. The EU’s money or plans for faster processing of asylum applications are unlikely to change their views.
For this reason, when the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs says that “no one will be satisfied” with these new measures, she is highlighting the compromise that must be reached between humanitarian duty and political reality.
Furthermore, it also emphasizes the difficulty of solving this long-term crisis.
Because right now?
The new pact, which has been pushed more strongly by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, has been advanced after the fires in the Moria camp on the island of Lesbos.
The number of people arriving on European shores seeking refuge has dropped to around 55,000 so far this year and Ms Johansson made it clear that the situation was very different now. “In 2015 we had 1.8 million irregular arrivals and the majority were refugees,” he said. The numbers were much lower now and the refugees were a minority.
However, the schemes have already prompted the Save the Children charity to accuse the EU of not having learned “from its recent mistakes”. Meanwhile, Amnesty International said the pact was “designed to erect walls and strengthen fences” and would do nothing to alleviate the suffering of people in camps on the Greek islands or in Libya.
Faster returns are also envisaged for migrants whose asylum claims have been rejected, with increased assistance for non-EU countries affected by migration.
Even before the planned pact was put in place, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said it would not work. Hungary’s nationalist government said the EU’s external borders should “remain perfectly sealed in all sections.”
