The EU27 interior ministers and their representatives failed, on Thursday 28 September, to reach agreement on the regulation on situations of crisis, force majeure and the instrumentalisation of migration, even though the Spanish Minister for Home Affairs, Fernando Grande-Marlaska Gómez, and the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, said they were “absolutely convinced” that an agreement could be reached “in the next few days”.
Both took the view that the differences that still exist between the Member States were no more than mere “nuances”.
The ministers’ day had got off to a good start, however, with the German minister, Nancy Faeser, confirming that the German coalition could now rally behind a final compromise put together on the evening of Wednesday 27 September.
On paper, Berlin’s support seemed to pave the way for a political agreement, as a qualified majority had been reached (see EUROPE 13259/4).
This last compromise text, which was then amended during the day with new recitals, but on essentially technical points, according to one source, notably deleted an article giving Member States the right in these situations of crisis or instrumentalisation to lower reception standards such as accommodation or the supply of basic necessities. The latest compromise also strengthened the language on NGOs, whose humanitarian action can under no circumstances be equated with an attempt at instrumentalisation, which must correspond to a genuine willingness to destabilise the European Union.
Although sources had indicated on 27 September that negotiations between Madrid and Berlin were partly focused on another element of the text that the German government did not like, namely the possibility for a Member State to apply the asylum procedure at the border (considered less protective) in these exceptional situations, including for people whose nationality receives 75% positive responses to requests for protection, the latest text ultimately made no changes here.
Nor did the German government receive any new assurances about families with minors, which it wanted to exclude from these border procedures in exceptional cases. While Berlin has succeeded in ensuring that families with minors are given priority in these situations, the minister said she wanted to count on the European Parliament’s help later in the negotiations to improve the provisions on families and minors.
Italy’s reservations
However, as diplomats had feared on Wednesday 27 September, these adjustments have not yet been approved by all the Member States, especially Italy, which, according to several sources, has expressed reservations and asked for more time to analyse the compromise. Other ministers have also expressed the need for further consultation with their capitals.
While Rome and Berlin have recently exchanged letters on the subject of NGOs in the Mediterranean, Italy is said to have expressed reservations about these new additions on NGOs and reception conditions. However, the Spanish Interior Minister insisted several times on Thursday evening that the “main obstacles” had been removed following this meeting.
In principle, a meeting of the Member States’ ambassadors should be convened in the next few days to finalise the agreement, possibly on Monday 2 October.
External dimension
On the external dimension of migration, on Thursday morning the ministers supported the agreement sealed with Tunisia in July, although they asked the Commission to ensure that it was properly implemented. They reiterated the need to develop such partnerships with third countries that go beyond the simple migration dimension and form part of a more global approach.
While they also called for more resources to make these partnerships work, some ministers stressed as well the need to retain leverage over these countries.
The reflection launched by the Spanish Presidency on a preventive model for irregular immigration based on these broad partnerships, in particular, was well received (see EUROPE 13257/12).
Ukraine
However, on Thursday the ministers managed to reach agreement on extending the temporary protection granted to 4.1 million Ukrainians in the EU. This will last until March 2025, compared with March 2024 previously, although the Spanish minister hoped that this extension would not be necessary.
Link to the latest ‘Crisis’ text: https://aeur.eu/f/8so (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)