Brussels, 19/05/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 20 May, European interior ministers will discuss three main issues - liberalisation of visa regimes, implementation of the EU-Turkey agreement on migration and, more generally, the migrant situation in the EU, such as the relocation/resettlement programmes and the proposal to establish a Border Control Agency.
The most sensitive issue is the agreement reached with Turkey on 18 March (see EUROPE 11515), which would give Turkey a visa-free travel regime, in theory at the end of June 2016. The Turkish authorities still need to meet all the 72 preconditions. It looks technically unlikely that the deadline will be met, and the European Parliament has not yet adopted its position as co-legislator (see EUROPE 11548).
One of the ministers' main concerns is expected to reach a positive outcome on Friday, when they are expected to reach agreement in principle (a 'general approach') on the mechanism for suspending visa-free regimes in the event of abuse of them by non-EU nationals of if non-EU countries fail to respect the conditions under which they were granted visa-free travel.
The suspension mechanism covers all countries that have already been or will be offered visa-free travel, in other words allowing passport-holders from these countries to enter the Schengen Area without a visa for a maximum stay of six months (in any six month period). This is of particular importance in the light of the visa-free travel regime being considered for Turkey. It was validated in a record fast time at Council level. Unveiled on 4 May, the suspension mechanism was agreed upon by national ambassadors to the EU at the COREPER committee as rapidly as Wednesday 18 May.
Under this provisional agreement, the mechanism shortens the timelines for the EU deciding to suspend a visa-free travel regime and extends the grounds for suspension. Such regimes can not only be suspended in the event of abuse by people from the non-EU countries involved, for example if they lodge what are deemed to be unfounded requests for asylum, but they can also be suspended if the countries reduce their level of cooperation with the EU on the readmission to their country of illegal migrants, whether their own nationals or people from other countries transiting through their country. The European Commission and the member states also foresee that that a visa-free travel scheme can be suspended in the event of threats to public order or domestic security. The provisional agreement also covers the facilitation of notifications by the member states and gives the Commission the power to put the suspension mechanism into action itself.
This simpler and faster visa-free travel suspension mechanism is likely to reassure the member states, which could have questions about the idea of giving free access to the Schengen Area and its free movement to four countries and between 120 million and 130 million people, said a European source. On 4 May, the Commission offered visa-free travel not only to Turkey, but also to Kosovo (see EUROPE 11546), having shortly beforehand offered it to Ukraine (see EUROPE 11536) and Georgia (see EUROPE 11508). The question of Ukraine will be discussed by national ambassadors on Wednesday 25 May. There are still delays vis-à-vis Turkey due to the five criteria that still need to be met by the Turkish authorities.
On Friday, the ministers will not take any decisions on liberalisation of visas for Turkey. The Commission is expected to unveil a new progress report in mid-June and it is not until the second fortnight of June that a decision might be taken at the European summit, as long as Turkey has met the 72 preconditions by then. Some of the criteria, such as all Turks having to have biometric passports with finger prints and photographs of the face, cannot be implemented until 1 July. The European Parliament also needs to vote on the question, but the above European source points out that July is a short month, implying that the visa-free travel regime for Turkey might not be formalised until September and come on stream until October.
Discussing relocation and resettlement. The ministers will discuss the migrant situation in Europe and the latest European Commission reports on relocating asylum-seekers from Greece and Italy and the resettlement of refugees from outside the EU in the EU (see EUROPE 11553). They are expected to be invited again by the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the EU to stick to the numbers they have committed to and offer to accept additional refugees. To date, 177 people have been resettled in the EU from Turkey, although countries have currently committed to resettle around a thousand a month. The Commission says the resettlement speed is too slow.
The situation in the central Mediterranean will also be examined, the idea being to get an overview of this migration route and possible changes, particularly in light of the political situation in Libya. The above source says the figures for arrivals in Italy in the first four months of 2016 are similar to those of the same period in 2015.
Finally, the ministers will discuss the proposal for a European Border Guard Agency. The Council is currently waiting for the European Parliament to give its view. The member states want the political process to be completed by the end of June and for the Commission to begin preparations in the summer for bringing the new agency on stream. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic and Maëlle Didion)