Brussels, 16/12/2015 (Agence Europe) - The management of immigration will once again be a key subject of the meeting of the heads of state and government on Thursday 17 December. The debate will focus mainly on the failure to date to apply the relocation decisions regarding asylum seekers, the hotspots for the registration of migrants and the latest proposals of the Commission on reinforcing the surveillance of the external borders of the EU (see EUROPE 11454).
The leaders will focus on the “implementation of the decisions” and the instruments currently available to limit the flow of migrants into the EU, a European source stated on Wednesday 16 December. The day before, the President of the European Council set the tone for the discussions in his invitation to the European leaders. “In September, we crafted a comprehensive strategy on how to deal with the migratory crisis, but its implementation is still lagging behind. We need to speed up on all fronts, including the protection of the EU's external borders. Our goal is clear: we must regain control over our external borders to stem migratory flows and to preserve Schengen”, said Donald Tusk.
“Besides the debate on the future solutions, we must manage the ongoing crisis with the tools we have in hand. Frontex needs to be in a position to make checks of all the relevant databases, including security checks, be it SIS or Europol. In response to the Greek government's request for assistance in the form of a Rapid Border Intervention Team, member states and EU institutions will need to do everything in their power to assist Greece in this challenging task”, the President of the European Council continued.
On Tuesday, the Commission published a number of implementation reports on the decisions, for instance, to share out 160,000 refugees currently in Italy and Greece between the member states and to set in place six hotspots in Italy and five in Greece (see other article). It notes that only 208 people have been relocated and only two hotspots are up and running, one in Greece and the other in Italy. It also published the six-monthly report of the Schengen zone, in which it notes tension caused by the migratory flows for the freedom of movement zone, with a number of member states having brought back temporary controls on their internal borders.
“Taking back control of the external borders is an absolute prerequisite for regaining overall control of the situation”, a diplomat from a large country confirmed on Wednesday, adding that no mechanism (relocation, for instance) will work if the flows remain so intense. On Thursday, it will be necessary to carry out an “uncompromising assessment of what has been done to date”, the source added.
According to draft conclusions dated 16 December, the European leaders are expected once again to stress the need to carry out systematic controls on the external borders of the Schengen zone and systematically to register migrants and apply relocation decisions, which may be extended to other countries.
On Thursday, the leaders will hold an initial exchange of views on the proposals to create a new European agency of coastguards and border guards, although the discussion is expected to remain superficial, as the examination of the text has not yet got underway at the Council. With regard to this, the 'right to intervene' proposed by the Commission may already give rise to a number of reactions. An intrusive mechanism of this kind could simply “blow up” under examination by the Council, a senior diplomat from an Eastern European country explained. Countries such as Poland and Hungary, but also Spain, have “grave misgivings”, the source explained, going on to state that some countries “cannot imagine a German surveying their borders”. The other diplomatic source said that this capacity to intervene in a country without its consent at a point on its national border described as sensitive is, indeed, inconceivable.
Turkey. The EU/Turkey migration action plan will also be discussed on Thursday, but in the form of a mini-summit of eight countries, to be held that morning in the Austrian Embassy in Brussels (see EUROPE 11441). This meeting will discuss German proposals to set in place a voluntary resettlement programme for Syrian refugees currently in Turkey. The leaders of Germany, Austria, the Benelux countries, Finland, Sweden and Greece and the President of the Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, will attend, whilst France has not yet confirmed. They may discuss bringing the relocation and resettlement programmes closer together.
“Relocation has not worked”, “this method is dead and buried” and “we need to look for something else”, the Eastern European country source told us. “We are going to try out what we failed to achieve with relocation with refugees in Turkey”, the source continued. This switch from one programme to another may be to the liking of Poland and Hungary, which are resolutely opposed to the relocation mechanism.
As for the €3 billion which will pay for the EU/Turkey action plan, the envelope will be finalised in January, with participation of the EU budget to the tune of €1 billion (see EUROPE 11449).
Terrorism. On Friday, the European leaders will also discuss the fight against terrorism, although some countries would prefer to tackle this subject the day before. They will discuss the agreement reached with the European Parliament on the 'European PNR' on the transfer of airline passengers' data (see EUROPE 11450), the targeted reform of the Schengen border code, the reinforcement of cooperation between their services and between Frontex and Europol. They will also stressed the need for measures to fight trafficking in firearms and the financing of terrorism. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic with Jan Kordys)