Brussels, 03/09/2015 (Agence Europe) - In a letter to High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, the foreign affairs ministers of Germany, France and Italy - Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Laurent Fabius and Paolo Gentiloni - have called for a European external policy on migration that is “comprehensive and differentiated”.
The three foreign ministers also make “suggestions” in this letter and its enclosed non-paper - a copy of which was obtained by EUROPE on Thursday 3 September. The suggestions are for developing a European migration policy based on an integrated policy approach that is focused on both the internal and external dimensions of migration. The ministers say that they would like a debate to be organised on this matter during the informal meeting of the EU foreign ministers on Friday 4 and Saturday 5 September (see other article). “Our common foreign and security policy must prove that it is equal to the task when it comes to tackling the root causes of migration in the countries of origin and the situation in the countries of transit”, the three ministers state.
Steinmeier, Fabius and Gentiloni first believe that an “inclusive political process in Syria to finally resolve the conflict” is a “priority”. They call for the EU and its member states to enhance their efforts to support Syria's neighbouring countries - Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt - which are hosting over 3 million refugees. The three ministers also want Europeans to do more, when this is possible, in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, in order to help the creation of a safe environment in (post-) conflict regions and capacity-building for state structures.
Writing that Libya has become a major transit country, Steinmeier, Fabius and Gentiloni believe that once a national unity government has been set up there, the EU should help establish professional administrative structures in Libya - “in particular as regards effective border control”. In the view of the three foreign ministers, the EU should also strengthen its support to Tunisia in managing its borders with Libya.
More generally, Steinmeier, Fabius and Gentiloni would like greater European cooperation with the African countries of transit and origin. The ministers propose that dedicated migration experts be deployed in EU delegations and member states' embassies in the African countries concerned, “in order to facilitate the development of tailor-made support packages”.
In addition, the three foreign ministers state that a “huge” percentage of the asylum seekers in Europe, whose asylum applications are refused, originate from the Western Balkans, and it would therefore be desirable to strengthen communication of the fact that asylum applications from this region do “not open the path to permanent residence in an EU member state”. “We need to agree on which countries we regard as safe countries of origin. In our view, all countries of the Western Balkans should be part of an EU-wide list of safe countries of origin”, the three ministers state.
In their letter, Steinmeier, Fabius and Gentiloni also propose that all European foreign affairs ministers prepare the next European Council meeting together with their interior ministers. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)