On Wednesday 29 June, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, reacted cautiously to the European agreement on migration obtained after a hard fought fight on Thursday night by the EU28 (see EUROPE 12051). According to Mr Tusk it is “still much too early to talk of success” and this agreement “was the easiest part”.
The real test would be what happened on the ground. The Austrian Chancellor, Sebastian Kurz, whose country will be taking over the reins of the EU on Sunday 1 July, stated that “as in any agreement, what is decisive is the implementation and we're definitely going to put the pressure on so that this occurs”.
Mr Tusk listed the points in the agreement obtained unanimously and particularly highlighted EU external borders protection, which will be provided through “regional landing platforms” for migrants rescued at sea in the relevant third countries.
Mr Kurz was pleased to announce that “I have always said we should adopt the Australian model. This has worked for totally putting a stop to drownings. I was criticised massively and reprimanded but now this debate on centres outside Europe is clearly on the table”.
The IMO and the UNHCR will be responsible, with the host countries, for taking care of the people rescued and identifying those that should be protected and those that will have to return to their countries of origin or country of transit.
The President of the Council also welcomed the fact that the EU28 had agreed on developing a specific budget instrument after 2020 for migration; financing the Trust Fund for Africa (€500 million from the EDF); releasing the second tranche of €3 billion for the Refugee Facility in Turkey (see other article).
The agreement reached also focuses on the creation of “control centres” in EU countries that wish to participate in which people rescued in European territorial waters will be placed. Their dossiers will be fast tracked and candidates eligible for asylum will be able to be relocated in the EU. This will be on a voluntary basis and will not have a negative impact on the so-called Dublin reform on asylum.
The Visegrád countries have therefore already been excluded from having to participate and will have the right to do so. Italy, according to its prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, does not want to participate either. For Emmanuel Macron, things are quite clear, France “is not a country first entry” and will therefore not host these control centres. The same thing for Belgium, at least, “as long as the Dublin reform has not been undertaken”, explained the country’s Prime Minister, Charles Michel.
The German Chancellor was relieved and hoped to calm the insurrection within the ranks of her government coalition on the question of secondary movements of asylum seekers in the Schengen area.
Ms Merkel asserted that “I saw that the situation was tense in Germany. This was an incentive to try and find a compromise… we have obtained a substantial solution”. She added, “I tried to reach an agreement with the member states of first arrival. And these countries, like Slovenia and Bulgaria also have to carry out border controls. My position of principle has not changed: do not do anything unilaterally".
The CSU interpret the conclusions from the European Summit as a blank cheque to send migrants back to the border.
Nonetheless, Italy does not intend to sign up to bilateral agreements, for example, with Germany, to readmit asylum seekers that have submitted a dossier on its own soil.
The Italian Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, stressed that “I have not signed up to any agreement with Ms Merkel. There are no obligations on Italy".
Reform of European asylum system in limbos. An agreement at the Council on reforming the so-called Dublin system will not be reached any time soon (see EUROPE 12034). The Europeans have simply recommended that this reform progresses “as quickly as possible" and that there is a balance between “responsibility and solidarity”. This dossier will therefore be handed over to the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU in July.
The French President, Emmanuel Macron welcomed the, “solution that was on a par with Europe and its values”. He also stated that “there are certain major principles upon which we cannot compromise, such as the right of asylum. The right of asylum is not the totality of the migration phenomena. This does not mean taking in everyone whatever the circumstances for their arrival”.
At the European Parliament, the Greens/EFA criticised the terms of the EU28 agreement. Philippe Lamberts from Belgium and Eva Joly from France said that the EU was “burying the right of asylum”. The GUE/NGL group said that the agreement was a dismissal of migrants' rights. The German Social Democrat, Udo Bullmann, was a little more circumspect and said, on the contrary, that progress had been made particularly with the sharing of solidarity and the outlining of the notion of “European responsibility”. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic, with editorial support)